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Tyrone thought call up was a prank
TYRONE MINGS thought his shock England callup was a prank.
Gareth Southgate yesterday named the Aston Villa defender in his squad for the Euro 2020 qualifiers at Wembley against Bulgaria and Kosovo on September 7 and 10.
The 26-year-old centreback has impressed on his return to he Premier League with Villa after completing a £20m summer switch from Bournemouth.
“I thought it was a prank when I first found out,” said Mings, a former non-league defender with Yate Town and Chippenham Town.
“I got a text when I came in from training from Emily the England player liaison officer. “I texted back saying, ‘Oh s**t’. Excuse my language.
“She then called me and said, ‘I’m not joking.’ It was only I spoke to her on the phone, I knew it was genuine.
“Obviously I am delighted. It has been a long journey to get to this point.
“There are people in the squad that have come from nonleague too. It probably when makes it a little bit sweeter but every English player’s dream is to be called up into the national squad. Hopefully I get a chance to play.”
Boss Southgate said: “I really like his leadership. At times we have lacked that sort of presence.”
“His athleticism is a standout and we have to defend a lot on our half-way line, with a lot of space behind us.
“So, his speed, his strength, his agility, clearing balls out of his box... I mean, I lost count at Spurs away how many he cleared out of his own box.”
Mings has blossomed under the daily advice of Villa assistant head coach John Terry, the former Chelsea and England centre-back.
He added: “JT gave me a pat on the back. He is such a great person to learn from. The work he does to help me improve as a defender has been absolutely tremendous.”
Proud Villa boss Dean Smith said: “At the time I thought we were paying over the odds but it was a deal worth doing because we wanted him so badly.” LUCY BRONZE was crowned Europe’s best player last night – an achievement greeted by Lionesses head coach Phil Neville as ‘thoroughly deserved.’
The powerful rightback was forced to miss a glittering ceremony in Monaco to turn out in a largely unfamiliar role in midfield on a difficult evening in Leuven.
Neville said: “It’s an amazing achievement. We were delighted when we found out she was on the shortlist. Now she’s won it. It’s tremendous.”
Bronze, 27, must have wondered why she had turned her back on the ceremony as the Lionesses threw away a two-goal lead before being rescued by Nikita Parris’ late penalty.