Gareth Southgate says he 'commits a crime' every time he picks England team because of strength in squad
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Published 11/10/2021 at 19:30 GMT
England continue their 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign on Tuesday as they face Hungary at Wembley. The Three Lions are almost assured of a place in Qatar and manager Gareth Southgate has spoken about the challenges he faces in selecting a team with the amount of strength in depth he has in the squad.
Southgate: '"I commit a crime every time I pick a team" ahead of Hungary game
England manager Gareth Southgate says he feels like he “commits a crime” every time he picks a team, because of the players he has to leave out.
With England in a strong position in their World Cup qualifying group, Southgate made several changes in Saturday’s 5-0 thrashing of Andorra.
There is likely to be more rotation for Tuesday's qualifier against Hungary as Southgate continues to make good use of the strength in depth in the squad.
"We want the squad to feel involved," said Southgate.
"It is important they know their value and can contribute; it wasn't a friendly [against Andorra], there were qualification points at stake and I was really pleased with the quality of the performance as well as the application.
“I have a headache and commit a crime every time I pick a team. We have such strong competition for places; there were lots of players who did their own confidence and reputation the world of good the other day and that is pleasing to see.
“We can't be a team that has a day off. We want to keep consistency, and we've had that throughout this calendar year. Everyone has pride in putting the shirt on."
Jack Grealish and Ben Chilwell netted their first international goals against Andorra, while Tammy Abraham, James Ward-Prowse and Bukayo Saka also scored.
England need two wins from their three remaining qualifiers – against Hungary, Albania and San Marino - to guarantee a spot at next year's World Cup in Qatar.
Mason Mount joined Southgate at the press conference ahead of the game on Tuesday and spoke about his pride at being named among the nominees for this year's Ballon d'Or award.
"It was special,” said the Chelsea midfielder. “To see that and to be alongside those names is obviously a dream. For all the years you work hard, dedicate and see something like that, it shows everything pays off. It is just the start, it doesn't stop now."
Asked if he felt he had a chance of beating Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski to the award, Mount said: "I doubt it but you never know. The most important thing for me is that I keep trying to hit the levels that I have set before and go even further."
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Mount: Ballon d'Or nomination 'special' but 'doubt if I'll win'
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