Gareth Southgate will name his training squad on May 21 for the final preparations before Euro 2024 kicks off next month.
The group, the size of which is yet to be determined, will meet up at St George’s Park before two warm-up games against Bosnia & Herzegovina on June 3 and Iceland on June 7.
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Southgate will whittle down that squad to his final 26 for the June 8 deadline before they fly to Germany two days later for their opening Group C game against Serbia at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen on June 16.
Southgate has a lot to think about and he must get his decisions right if England are to fulfil their billing as one of the tournament favourites.
A key issue he has to consider will be the fitness and form of players who, ordinarily, would have been strong candidates to be on the plane. Many squad regulars have suffered injuries at some point this season in what has been a long, gruelling campaign. Those who have returned to action in recent weeks will have question marks hanging over them.
Here, The Athletic looks at who Southgate could be sweating over in the next two weeks.
Goalkeepers
This has become a problem position for Southgate due to contenders’ injuries and lack of game time.
Newcastle United’s No 1 Nick Pope has been absent since early December after dislocating his shoulder in a 1-0 victory over Manchester United but has recently returned to the substitutes’ bench. Eddie Howe has voiced concerns over whether Pope will be ready for the tournament, with just three Premier League games left for the goalkeeper to stake his claim. The Newcastle head coach suggested the injury had presented Pope with “psychological barriers”.
Injuries have plagued Pope’s England career. He has not played for England since September 2022 and was omitted from Southgate’s squad last May after surgery on his hand.
Crystal Palace’s Sam Johnstone has already been ruled out of the tournament after withdrawing from the squad in March to have surgery on his elbow, further reducing Southgate’s options.
Aaron Ramsdale’s lack of game time at Arsenal has not helped, either. Ramsdale, who was in the squad with Johnstone and Jordan Pickford in October, has made 12 appearances this season and only two since mid-December.
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The form of James Trafford will also be a concern to Southgate. Trafford has lost his starting place at Burnley to Kosovo international Arijanet Muric and has not made a club appearance since March 10.
With the problems mounting, it looks increasingly like Southgate will be relying heavily on Pickford to stay fit.
Defenders
Goalkeeper isn’t the only problem position facing Southgate. Full-back has been an issue for most of this season, with Reece James, Ben Chilwell, Luke Shaw and Kyle Walker suffering injuries.
James hasn’t played for Chelsea since December 10 after undergoing hamstring surgery, but Mauricio Pochettino has confirmed he is back in full training and available to be included in the squad. He will be short of match fitness.
Team-mate Chilwell is still out. He would be a risk to take to Germany after another injury-disrupted season, with hamstring and now a knee issue limiting his appearances.
Shaw has made 15 appearances this season and was expected to return for United’s FA Cup final against Manchester City on May 25, but Erik ten Hag said yesterday (Friday) the left-back had suffered a setback. He would also fall into the ‘risk’ category as he has not played since February due to a hamstring injury.
There has been better news at right-back, with Walker returning from a hamstring problem. Kieran Trippier is “getting closer” to a return for Newcastle, according to Howe, after a calf injury sidelined him since mid-February. Howe said on Friday: “He has trained this week. I will make a decision today.”
Centre-back John Stones, who, like his City team-mate Walker, limped out of England action in March, is also back after an adductor injury.
Harry Maguire has recently picked up a muscle injury and was ruled out of action for three weeks, but is expected back before the end of the season.
AC Milan’s Fikayo Tomori missed two months with a hamstring injury but returned in March, while Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi has only just returned to action after two months out with a knee injury. Levi Colwill is fit again at Chelsea, too, after a toe injury had kept him out since early March. Those three centre-backs should be fresh but lack match fitness.
Southgate is already without Aston Villa’s Tyrone Mings, who has been out since August with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury.
With so many issues affecting his defenders, versatility will be important. Joe Gomez’s ability to play as a central defender and full-back may prove tempting for Southgate. His Liverpool team-mate Trent Alexander-Arnold can also play as a full-back and central midfielder.
Midfielders
Southgate will be crossing every part of his anatomy that Jude Bellingham comes through the rest of the season unscathed. The Real Madrid midfielder has four more league games and a Champions League final before his club season finishes on June 1.
Bellingham has scored 22 goals and provided 10 assists for Real and he is becoming just as crucial to Southgate’s England.
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Declan Rice has become equally important in providing the platform for Bellingham, but the third midfield position is up for grabs.
If Southgate is cautious and goes for two holding midfielders, as he has in the past, Jordan Henderson’s departure from the Saudi Pro League in January to join Ajax, where he has become the team captain, could help. However, he has made seven Eredivisie appearances and recently missed five games with a muscle injury. He returned last weekend, playing 81 minutes in the 4-1 win over Volendam.
Kalvin Phillips can also play in that deeper role but his career has been hampered by injuries and a slump in form. On loan at West Ham United from Manchester City but sidelined with a calf strain, his season could be over.
Further forward, James Maddison made a bright start to his Tottenham Hotspur career but an ankle injury in November sidelined him for nearly three months. He returned in January but is struggling for form and has only completed 90 minutes once since September. In Spurs’ most recent games, the defeats against Chelsea and Liverpool this month, he was a substitute. Jack Grealish has also struggled to find consistency at City this season.
Mason Mount has also endured a disappointing season at Manchester United, missing four months with a calf injury. Ten Hag confirmed yesterday that he would miss the Arsenal game this weekend because of another injury.
More encouragingly, Conor Gallagher has played a starring role in Chelsea’s recent upturn in form and another young star has broken through — United’s Kobbie Mainoo, who is making a late run for contention. Mainoo, 19, was impressive on his England debut against Belgium in March.
Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze has been impressive since returning in March from a muscle injury and has scored five goals in his last 10 games. At Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp has been championing a first call-up for his young midfielder Harvey Elliott.
Forwards
Like Bellingham, captain Harry Kane is indispensable. An injury to him would severely hamper England’s chances. Kane has been in ruthless goalscoring form, hitting an astonishing 44 goals in 45 appearances, but Bayern Munich missed out on the Bundesliga title for the first time in a decade and suffered a devastating late defeat against Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-final. Kane came off late in that game with a sore back.
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Ollie Watkins is the obvious replacement after a 27-goal season for Aston Villa, but beyond him and Kane, England seem short of strikers.
Brentford’s Ivan Toney should be fresh after being suspended for the first half of the season but has only found the net four times in 15 league games since his return.
Callum Wilson has won eight senior caps under Southgate but has suffered from an injury-disrupted campaign for Newcastle, missing 23 games in total with a hamstring and a freakish chest injury that required surgery on his pectoral muscle. He returned last month and has scored twice in three games last week in the 4-1 win over Burnley at Turf Moor, with Southgate watching on from the stands.
Out wide, Southgate has plenty of options, with Chelsea’s Cole Palmer, 22, enjoying a breakthrough campaign and Anthony Gordon, 23, being one of Newcastle’s main attacking threats.
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City’s Phil Foden and Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka are expected to start after their excellent seasons, even if the latter is a doubt for this Sunday’s game against United with an injury.
One player who seems to have fallen completely out of the reckoning, despite being in the 2022 World Cup squad, is Raheem Sterling, who has failed to maintain his encouraging start to the season at Chelsea and recently picked up an undisclosed injury. He was back on the bench for the 5-0 win against West Ham.
The only injury concern in attack for Southgate is United’s Marcus Rashford, who has missed the last three games with an ankle injury but is expected to recover before the end of the season.
Together, they leave Southgate with an abundance of talent to choose from — and plenty to think about — before showing his hand in under two weeks.
(Top photo: Getty Images)
