Fans’ delight at Wilson call-up
ENGLAND boss Gareth Southgate has handed former City striker Callum Wilson his first call-up to the England squad for the coming fixtures with USA and Croatia.
The in-form Bournemouth forward has netted seven times in 13 appearances already this season, and having had to battle hard to return from a long injury lay-off.
Wilson, 26, left the Sky Blues for the south coast in the summer of 2014 and he netted 23 times in his first season – a promotion-winning one for the Cherries.
Southgate, meanwhile, has defended the inclusion of Wayne Rooney in the England squad, revealing he could even feature as captain in a tribute that has been discussed for over a year.
Rooney retired from international duty in August 2017 after 119 caps and a record 53 goals, and his England career is set to be honoured by a final, further cap against the USA at Wembley next Thursday with a substitute appearance.
The England manager remains adamant that the occasion will not devalue the shirt and also described as “strange” the divisive debate that has surrounded Rooney’s involvement, which the forward felt would not be appropriate in the friendly against Nigeria on the eve of the World Cup.
“Those discussions started over 12 months ago; I was quite happy for the tribute to be before the World Cup but Wayne didn’t want to detract from the team at that time, which everyone respected,” said Southgate. “That’s why it was put back.
“Now we have the opportunity at Wembley to pay that tribute. The players would respect Wayne’s contribution deserves the best possible send-off. I understand that’s caused a lot of debate but it’s a small way of appreciating what he’s given to his country.
“We’re a strange country in that we bemoan the fact that we haven’t achieved as much as we’d like, and then we have a player who should be held in the highest regard and we’re spending a lot of time justifying giving him that tribute.
“I’m looking forward to working with him and giving him the send-off he deserves, which isn’t always possible.
“We can assess, once everything’s finished, whether that was the right thing to do and whether we’d do it again. Over a period I’ve tried to approach things differently, and some of those decisions are a bit risky; some have paid off, some won’t. I’m completely comfortable with the situation.”
The 33-year-old Rooney had also been England captain, but in his retirement Southgate’s youthful team created a new identity with Harry Kane as its new leader.
Dismissing suggestions Rooney would be handed his long-time number-10 shirt, Southgate regardless revealed he would have “no issue” if he again wore the captain’s armband, and his belief that the national team’s setup has too often overlooked great former players.
“The last game he played, when he came on, Jordan Henderson ran over and gave him the armband as soon as he ran on the pitch,” he said. “That would depend on the circumstances and who’s out there, but I’ve no issue with that at all.
“The value of caps is very difficult to be precise on. You can come on with two minutes to go because you need a change; I’ve played when we’ve changed the whole team at half-time. This fixture is an opportunity to learn about some new players; we then have the game with Croatia which is important to us and I want to protect that squad as much as possible in the first game. There seems to be a general feeling that the team from ‘66 maybe wasn’t recognised as might as they much have been, for certain periods. We’ve tried to involve former players as much as possible.
“If I’m a current player, the way former players are treated is very important to me, because you can see what the future holds for you.”
Naming a 28-strong squad, Southgate also handed a recall to Everton defender Michael Keane, and retained Dortmund’s Jadon Sancho. CALLUM Wilson’s hot streak of form has been been recognised in the form of a full England call-up - and Coventry City fans are loving it.
The Coventry-born attacker scored 23 in 55 appearances for the Sky Blues and the City fans remember his story as they congratulate him on a true career high.
Here’s what the Coventry fans have said...
Dave Clare: Always happy when a Cov academy graduate does well. The better they do, the more attention is given to our academy, the better the standard of young player we can attract. The likes of Madders and Wilson are a great advert for our club #PUSB
David Michael Collins: Absolutely buzzing for @ CallumWilson #PUSB #SkyBlues #England #ThreeLions
Brett W: Super Callum Wilson! Delighted for you @ CallumWilson #pusb
Sue Medlock: @ CallumWilson YEEEEEEESSSSSS!! So well deserved @England @ Coventry_City #PUSB
Wozza: Delighted for @ CallumWilson! Hopefully I’ll see him get his 1st cap! #PUSB
Dan Howells: Superb! Coventry boy doing the city and midlands proud @ CallumWilson #PUSB - would have happened earlier but for injury. Great news.
Simon Williams: Well deserved, hopefully an England regular from here on
Jack Keane: Maddison and Wilson in the same year
Clint Van Damme: his stock has certainly risen given the start to the season he’s had. Hopefully he stays fit and wins an England cap.
Sky Blue Tony 176: Done pretty well for a one season wonder in league one. Always rated him myself and if he wasn’t as injury prone as he is I think his career would be far more advanced than it already
is.