Gareth Southgate considers Kieran Tripper to be ahead of Trent Alexander-Arnold in England’s pecking order despite a swell of supporters and pundits criticising the England manager for not playing the Liverpool defender.
Eyebrows were raised when Alexander-Arnold, who was on the substitutes bench but did not come on against Italy, was left out of the squad which drew 3-3 with Germany at Wembley in the Nations League on Monday night.
Reece James, clearly England’s standout right-sided defender, played the entirety of both matches and is set to keep his place at the World Cup in Qatar.
But Southgate has long been stalked by criticism of his decision not to play Alexander-Arnold and influential pundit Gary Lineker has led recent calls for the Liverpool player to get his chance.
A gentle reminder that England’s most creative midfielder, @Madders10 was not in the squad of 28. And England’s most creative footballer, @TrentAA sat on the bench getting splinters in his arse…
— Gary Lineker(@GaryLineker) September 23, 2022
“England’s most creative footballer, [Trent Alexander-Arnold] sat on the bench getting splinters in his arse,” Lineker tweeted to his 8.6m Twitter followers during the Italy game, which England lost 1-0.
The England manager, however, is sticking to his guns and explained that he left Alexander-Arnold out of the squad to face Germany because Kieran Trippier, the Newcastle United right-back, has a better all-round game.
For the past two matches, Southgate has picked a squad bigger than his starting XI and bench will permit and has had to leave out some players from the match-day squad.
“Firstly, I didn’t want any player to sit in the stand for two matches so the way we manage a group of people has been a big strength for us in the tournaments and we need to do that,” Southgate said after the 3-3 draw with Germany.
“The other night, [against Italy], we didn’t need the left-back cover, against Germany we did because of the way we went with the team so we needed Chilly [Ben Chilwell] on the bench and we had Kieran [Trippier] who, at the moment, I feel his all-round game is ahead [of Trent].”
Some may question that wisdom, but Trippier, 32, has been a mainstay of Southgate’s successful England teams, which reached the semi-finals of the last World Cup and were runners-up in the European Championship last summer. Trippier also won La Liga with Atletico Madrid not long ago and is vastly experienced.
Southgate revealed that he has had detailed chats with the players who are on the fringes of his World Cup squad, including Alexander-Arnold, to explain what needs to be done for them to break through. The general thinking behind the exclusion of Alexander-Arnold is that he is far inferior defensively than his England rivals.
He has also not started the season well for Liverpool, and his form will need to improve before he overtakes others.
i‘s England World Cup squad prediction
By Daniel Storey, i‘s chief’s football writer
Goalkeepers: Pickford, Ramsdale, Pope
Right-backs: James, Tripper, Walker
Left-backs: Shaw, Chilwell
Centre-backs: Maguire, Stones, Dier, Guehi, Coady
Centre-midfield: Bellingham, Rice, Mount, Henderson
Wide forwards: Sterling, Foden, Grealish, Saka, Rashford, Sancho
Strikers: Kane, Abraham, Toney
“I’ve had long conversations with all of them, been very clear with them about where they stand, what they need to improve upon, what they’re doing well so they’re very clear on where they sit,” Southgate said.
The England manager, meanwhile, has backed Harry Maguire to overcome a troubling spell that continued with a shaky performance against Germany.
Maguire gave the ball away to Jamal Musiala before fouling him for the penalty that put Germany ahead in the match. The Manchester United captain started both England matches despite struggling to get in his club’s side this season.
“Why do we pick him? Because he’s one of the players who gives us the best chance of winning,” Southgate said. “So really we should all be wanting a Harry Maguire that’s playing regularly and playing with confidence.”
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