Why doesn’t Ross get any time to shine?
ALL it took was one movement of his thumb and subsequent tap on a heart icon to let the world know his frustration.
Another international break is over and Ross Barkley finds himself back at Everton, aggravated that it has passed without him kicking a ball.
Though he made it to St George’s Park, there was no solace to be drawn. You will have an idea, then, why he pushed the ‘like’ icon on Twitter when he saw a tweet that listed the last seven matches he has been involved in for England.
It showed that from 630 minutes, his playing time was a big zero; that’s 10-and-a-half hours on the bench. It makes you wonder where his England career is going. Can he be a part of this new era under Gareth Southgate? Or is he heading down the road trodden by Matt Le Tissier 20 years ago? For all his talent, Le Tissier won only eight England caps and the constant disappointment wore him out.
Barkley’s situation has parallels, and the liking of that tweet gave a glimpse of the frustration that has festered since he won the last of 22 caps as a substitute in May.
When he was called up to Roy Hodgson’s Euro 2016 squad he was determined to repay his manager’s faith and went to France ready to make an impact. Instead he was left on the sidelines and his confidence was knocked by Hodgson squawking criticism at him in training.
Barkley thought Sam Allardyce’s arrival would represent a fresh start, but if anything it was the catalyst for further disappointment. He was not picked for Allardyce’s sole match in September and that setback contributed to his club form dipping. As he struggled to get to grips with Ronald Koeman’s methods in the opening months of this season, he was left out of the matches with Slovenia, Malta, Scotland and Spain, but since then his response has been impressive.
‘When I first saw the squads, I thought, “I’m going to go away and work on my game”,’ Barkley told Sportsmail last month. ‘But I had to keep going.’
And he did. Barkley has been excellent for Everton and deserved his recall. The numbers backed it up, too. Of the 10 midfielders Southgate named, none could better Barkley’s tally of seven assists in the Premier League and no English midfielder has got near his total of 67 chances created. Nathan Redmond is next best on 44. It made no difference.
Jake Livermore started in Germany; James Ward-Prowse came off the bench. Curiously, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was given the nod against Lithuania yet none of his 76 passes created a chance. Would Barkley have made more of an impact?
What we do know is that the two players are in completely different veins of form and Barkley’s confidence would only have been enhanced had he been unleashed by the England manager.
‘We like him,’ Southgate insisted. ‘He is a talented player. I wanted to get him into the game (against Lithuania) but unfortunately we did not get the chance.’
Yet the sympathy doesn’t help. Instead, the lack of activity has left him wondering what happens next. Representing England, Barkley says, ‘means a lot’.
Stand next to Barkley and you see the modern midfielder. Big, strong, athletic. His understanding of the game is improving and, most of all, he gets people out of their seats.
It’s impossible to do that, though, when you have to sit in one yourself.