LEWIS SHOULD BE SLAM DUNK FOR ENGLAND

IT IS hard to divert too much attention away from a player who almost removed the testicles of Luka Milivojevic and then scored a humdinger on the same afternoon. And yet sometimes a few blocks, tackles and a hoofed clearance deserves to do just that. None of which is to say that Lewis Dunk contributed more to Brighton’s win over Crystal Palace than Anthony Knockaert, but he was no less integral to a result that puts them very close to safety. What he offered was an exhibition of the old-world art of defending — the grubby stuff, the lunges, marking and challenges. Without his blocks, Wilfried Zaha and Michy Batshuayi would likely have scored in the first half. Without the crudest of 70-yard clearances, Glenn Murray would not have had his opener. He was the granite-hard foundation and there will always be a value in those defensive defenders. What will be interesting, then, is whether Gareth Southgate sees the same merit in Dunk as he prepares England to face Czech Republic and Montenegro. Chris Hughton is in no doubt that Dunk warrants his place again, having been included in Southgate’s past two squads, bringing his first cap. The Brighton manager said: ‘What got him the cap in the first place is what he has now. There wouldn’t be any player in the England manager’s thinking that is not going to be up and down.’ Palace were briefly level through Milivojevic, who recovered from a painful tackle from Knockaert to score his 17th penalty since joining in February 2017. Manager Roy Hodgson said: ‘A win would have given us a downhill ride in the last eight games but we didn’t take the opportunity.’