Gareth Southgate will get a final look at his England side before Euro 2020 begins when taking on Romania at the Riverside on Sunday.
The England manager also has a key decision to make following Trent Alexander-Arnold’s thigh injury, which ruled the Liverpool defender out of the upcoming tournament.
His absence means Southgate has one spot left to fill in his 26-man squad, and he will do so after Sunday’s second and final warm-up fixture at Middlesbrough’s stadium.
After Southgate’s headline-making decision to select four right-backs, he must now decide whether defensive or midfield is more necessary amid concerns Jordan Henderson and Harry Maguire may struggle to be fit for the Euros opener against Croatia on 13 June.
Everton defender Ben Godfrey and Southampton midfielder James Ward-Prowse are therefore arguably the two players most likely to replace Alexander-Arnold, and the Romania friendly could go some way towards swaying Southgate’s thinking.
Godfrey and Ward-Prowse were among the six names dropped from the provisional 33-man squad – Mason Greenwood was ruled out with injury – but like Jesse Lingard, Aaron Ramsdale, Ollie Watkins and Ben White the duo remained part of the England setup for the two warm-up games.
How to watch England vs Romania
- Date: Sunday 6 June
- Kick-off time: 5pm BST
- Venue: Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough
- TV: Live on ITV from 4.15pm
- Live stream: Watch online on the ITV Hub (valid TV licence required)
Lingard started the 1-0 win over Austria on Wednesday, with Godfrey, Ward-Prowse and Watkins all second-half substitutes.
This time around there could be a little more to read into Southgate’s selections, be it starting XI or from off the bench, as the Chelsea and Manchester City players who played in the Champions League final also look to make their mark after joining the rest of the squad on Friday – likewise the Manchester United contingent after their Europa League final.
Southgate could opt to pick his strongest available XI in a bid to strengthen their tactical understanding before Croatia, but equally Alexander-Arnold’s injury against Austria may have warned the England boss into carefully managing game-time and not rushing the Chelsea, City and United players back into action.
But regardless of personnel, it will be worth keeping an eye on England’s shape after Southgate deployed 4-2-3-1 against Austria.
The same again would point towards England using this formation for the Euros, but the presence of Chelsea, City and United players could prompt a switch to three at the back, a move which would likely accommodate both Kyle Walker at right centre-back and one of Reece James or Kieran Trippier at right wing-back.
As far as Romania are concerned, the nation currently ranked 43rd in the world failed to make this summer’s Euros after losing their play-off semi-final to Iceland, and they will be out to stop a run of three straight defeats.
Managed by Mirel Rădoi, Romania lost their last two World Cup qualifiers to Germany and Armenia before falling 2-1 Georgia in a friendly this week.
A far cry from the 1990s teams which reached the knockout stages of the 1990, 1994 and 1998 World Cups, Rangers’ Ianis Hagi will be the standout star hoping to cause an upset at the Riverside.
Romania broke English hearts back at Euro 2000, also beating them at the 1998 World Cup – a match in which Ianis’s father Gheorghe was captain – but this time around the odds are firmly stacked against another victory.
If that proved to be the case, however, it would give Southgate an unwanted headache a week before their Euros campaign gets under way.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3uVRsg6
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