After several withdrawals, England manager Gareth Southgate still has a couple of doubts heading into their penultimate World Cup qualifier against Albania on Friday night.
England can take a step closer to automatically qualifying for next year’s World Cup in Qatar if they can beat Albania at Wembley Stadium, and they could even seal their place if Poland drop points against Andorra.
That is unlikely, but nevertheless Southgate will be focused on the task at hand and his squad should have enough quality to dispatch Albania and pick up three points in Group I.
Losing Declan Rice due to illness is a blow given the West Ham midfielder’s form this season. The 22-year-old has been a regular for England since his debut in 2019, playing 14 times this year alone.
Meanwhile, Marcus Rashford and James Ward-Prowse have also left the camp, leaving 23 players in the squad for the matches with Albania and San Marino.
The match against Albania has come too soon for Luke Shaw, who is following concussion protocols after taking a knock to the head in the Manchester derby.
Mason Mount is a doubt after underdoing dental surgery earlier this week – a procedure which left the dozy Chelsea midfielder declaring “I ain’t got no teeth!” when filmed after his wisdom teeth were taken out.
The absence of Shaw means Ben Chilwell is likely to start at left-back against Albania, while Southgate will need to think about his formation when it comes to replacing Mount.
Last time out against Hungary, Southgate had tongues wagging when Mount, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish all started – but the resulting 1-1 draw led many to believe it was an attacking experiment that could be short-lived.
If Mount is out, there is space for both Foden and Mount to start so long as one – more likely the former – takes a central role in a 4-3-3 (or 4-2-3-1) formation, especially with Harry Kane and Raheem Sterling near certainties to start.
Bukayo Saka could yet have a say, potentially taking Grealish’s place wide left, but Tammy Abraham is unlikely to usurp Kane, and Sterling could keep his place despite a difficult start to the season at Manchester City.
Emile Smith Rowe will also push for a start after his first senior call-up, competing for the most advanced midfield role, while the presence of Jordan Henderson and Kalvin Phillips makes that the most likely two-man anchor with Jude Bellingham another option – providing Southgate reverts to a more defensive line-up.
In defence, beyond Chilwell starting at left-back and Harry Maguire in as one of the centre-backs, the other two spots are tight calls.
Reece James could well get the nod ahead of Kyle Walker and Trent Alexander-Arnold, likewise John Stones ahead of Tyrone Mings and Conor Coady, while in goal Jordan Pickford will be expected to keep the No 1 jersey despite Aaron Ramsdale’s impressive start to life at Arsenal.
That said, the prospect of Walker starting either at right-back or in a three-man defence remains a possibility, so too Southgate’s chances of rewarding Ramsdale for his fine season so far.
Predicted XI vs Albania: Pickford, James, Maguire, Stones, Chilwell, Henderson, Phillips, Foden, Sterling, Kane, Grealish
England squad for Albania and San Marino
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Sam Johnstone, Aaron Ramsdale
Defenders: Kyle Walker, John Stones, Harry Maguire, Ben Chilwell, Tyrone Mings, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Reece James, Conor Coady, Luke Shaw
Midfielders: Jordan Henderson, Kalvin Phillips, Jude Bellingham, Emile Smith Rowe, Mason Mount
Forwards: Raheem Sterling, Harry Kane, Jack Grealish, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Tammy Abraham
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3CckGL7
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