Opinion

England World Cup squad analysis: James Maddison in, Fikayo Tomori out and England starting 11 against Iran

Published 10/11/2022 at 15:46 GMT

After Gareth Southgate announced his 26-man England squad for the upcoming 2022 World Cup, Eurosport's Pete Sharland takes a look at some of the key talking points. Why was it right to take James Maddison? Should one of the Serie A-based players have gone? How worried should England fans be about the options at centre-back? All this and more as we break down the squad.

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After many weeks of chatter and speculation Gareth Southgate has finally named his 26-man squad for the 2022 World Cup. Now begins the 11 days of speculation and discourse about his decisions before England’s opening game against Iran.

There were a couple of surprise inclusions and perhaps one or two players who can feel hard done by at their exclusion.

Let’s take a look at some of the big talking points of the squad.

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Maddison the right (belatedly) decision

Was calling James Maddison the right decision? Short answer, yes.

Maddison has ten goal involvements this season in the Premier League (6G 4A), the only England player to have more is Harry Kane. (Bukayo Saka and Ivan Toney both also have ten). Southgate’s continual ignorance of Maddison case was down-right weird, despite the different dynamics that are involved in international management.

But tournament football is a different beast to Nations League games or qualification. This is a format where difference-makers are more important than in any ever setting, Maddison is one of England’s best difference-makers. Unless you think he will completely disrupt the group (and there are no reports to suggest that is the case) you have to include Maddison. That Southgate did is the right call, the Leicester City man could be a crucial option off the bench either in tight games against stubborn opponents, or when England need a spark when trailing.

Should either of Serie A duo have gone?

Two of the big names to be left out early on were Fikayo Tomori and Tammy Abraham, of AC Milan and AS Roma respectively. Both had worked their way back into contention thanks to their performances in Italy, even if it took some time for Southgate to recognise them.

But he has dropped both for the World Cup. And it’s hard not to watch Abraham this season and say that the decision isn’t justified. He has just three goals in 14 Serie A appearances this season and has missed some chances he absolutely would have buried. With Callum Wilson in good form for Newcastle United it was a pretty logical call.

I’m not so sure you can say that about the Tomori decision however. Tomori has been a revelation in Italy and given the weakness of the position for England, it seemed as if he would go. But Southgate has decided to go elsewhere with Conor Coady and the hybrid option of Ben White. With Coady and Harry Maguire Southgate is clearly going with players he knows.

Hopefully he hasn’t made the decision based on the performance against Chelsea because a) that red card was harsh on Tomori and b) he has played some excellent football in very big games aside from that clash. Southgate said at his press conference that he didn’t think any of the young centre-backs had done enough to take the place some of the older ones. I probably disagree but that’s why he gets paid the big bucks.

GIOVANNI ZINI STADIUM, GIOVANNI ZINI , ITALY - 2022/11/08: Fikayo Tomori of Ac Milan looks on during the Serie A match between Us Cremonese and Ac Milan. The match ends in a tie 0-0. (Photo by Marco Canoniero/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Image credit: Eurosport

Who plays out wide flanking Kane?

So whatever formation Southgate decides to play Kane will be through the middle with two attacking players either side of him. That is true in a 3-4-3 or a 4-3-3. So who should those players be? The incumbents are Raheem Sterling and Phil Foden. They have played there a lot and Southgate clearly likes how they play with Kane, the former in particular has a really good understanding with the Tottenham man.

But Sterling is also struggling for form a bit and Saka has been playing superbly for an Arsenal team that are top of the league. More so than anywhere else on the pitch this position may give us the best indication of Southgate’s preference between form or experience. On form Saka should probably start, but there’s a good chance he won’t.

Jack Grealish and Marcus Rashford are the other options, but both might be favoured by Southgate as options off the bench. Grealish in particular, is an absolute nightmare for tiring full-backs to deal with, even if he can sometimes take a little to get into games. The other option is using Mason Mount or Maddison wider but that seems unlikely.

It’s worth taking a moment to mention Ivan Toney and Jarod Bowen here. One player who would have backed up Kane, and another who would have flanked him. With Toney it becomes a straight shoot-out between him and Callum Wilson. I think you can probably make the argument either way, but Toney’s goal-scoring (and penalty!) record certainly warranted a look and you’d imagine he will be the first call if Wilson or Kane get injured. For Bowen he is another who has probably been let down by not being one of Southgate’s trusted group as well as the versatility of some of the other players.

Raheem Sterling and Graham Potter

Image credit: Getty Images

How worried should we be about centre-back?

Well, at least a little bit and probably closer to quite a lot. As a reminder here are the options at centre-back: Harry Maguire, Eric Dier, John Stones, Kyle Walker, Ben White and Conor Coady. Not exactly an inspiring list.

Look, there are some positives. Walker has played well for England in the past, Dier and White are both playing well and Stones has looked solid as well. But Walker is also coming off a long-term injury that would have ruled 99% of player out of the World Cup. White has mostly been playing at right-back and England fans have bad memories about mistakes made by Stones and Dier in the past. And Maguire has barely played for his club.

This position group is why most expect Southgate to revert to 3-4-3 for the tournament. It brings the best out of Walker (White could also be very good in that RCB role) and it provides additional protection for a group who are not elite. In a three we think it should be Stones-Dier-Walker/White. But if we’re being honest, based on everything we know about Southgate, Maguire will be starting on the left-hand side.

Head Coach Gareth Southgate of England with Harry Maguire after their sides 3-3 draw during the UEFA Nations League League A Group 3 match between England and Germany at Wembley Stadium on September 26, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Robin Jones/Getty

Image credit: Getty Images

Who starts in midfield?

As outlined before, having experimented with a midfield three in the past it seems as if it will almost certainly be a two for the World Cup. Here are the options for Southgate: Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham, Kalvin Phillips, Jordan Henderson, Mason Mount, James Maddison and Conor Gallagher. That’s a lot of players to go into two spots.

So Phillips is definitely out, because he is still not fully fit. Henderson might drop to the bench for a similar reason, plus he’s a really useful option to have come on in the final 30 minutes to get some control. Starting in a two isn’t ideal for Mount and particularly Maddison, and it’s probably too early for Gallagher.

So that leaves us with Rice and Bellingham, which seems like the right combination. Rice will sit a little deeper, protect the back line and build-up the play. Bellingham is more dynamic, he covers ground and has a brilliant range of passing, long or short. The real strength of the Borussia Dortmund man though is the way he beats player by driving with the ball, it’s a rare skill in the middle of the pitch and will be critical for England.

If want to go more attacking in either a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 against a team parking the bus then Mount, Gallagher and Maddison will all be great options. Gallagher’s legs might be very useful in the extreme heat.