Gareth Southgate has come under scrutiny since his decision
to call up the inexperienced Ben White who has just one cap to his name as a
replacement for the injured Trent-Alexander-Arnold.
Many people felt that Southampton’s James Ward-Prowse was
more deserving of a spot in the final 26-man squad for the European Championships
especially after his performance at the Riverside Stadium against Romania on
Sunday.
The central midfielder was one of the brighter sparks for
England as they failed to score from open play against a side who sit 37th in
the World Rankings.
Even with the injury to Alexander-Arnold Southgate still has
three right-backs at his disposal which is why White’s inclusion led to some
raised eyebrows but I agree with his choice.
With uncertainty surrounding the fitness of Harry Maguire
and Jordan Henderson, White offers Southgate the luxury of being able to play
in both of their positions should neither player be fit enough to start the
tournament.
White may only end up playing a bit-part role but what an
experience for the 23-year-old to be part of a vibrant squad seeking to win a
major competition for the first time in 55 years.
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| Patrick Elmont- Uefa /gettyimages |
By picking the Brighton defender Southgate may be looking
ahead to the World Cup in 17 months’ time and the Euros present a perfect
opportunity to allow young players like him and Jude Bellingham to gain a feel of
what tournament football is like.
Croatia is a tough opening assignment for the Three Lions
who will have painful memories of their last meeting in a major tournament.
Mario Mandzukic broke English hearts with his extra-time
winner in the World Cup Semi-final in 2018.
That defeat often leads some fans to question whether
England are actually a good side arguing that as soon as we come up against
decent opponents we come unstuck.
I disagree with this given the fact that in the 3 years
since that loss we have exacted revenge on Zlatko Dalic’s men in the Nation’s League
group stage as well as claiming victories against Belgium and Spain.
What appeals to me about this England side though is its
identity. Gareth has managed to unite the players, supporters, and media so
that we are no longer as pessimistic about the national team as we once were.
For many years I was the most pessimistic England fan you
could meet and harboured resentment towards them due to their lack of
direction and affinity with the fans.
So much so I made an ill-advised Facebook post saying “Come
on Scotland” when the two teams met at Hampden Park in 2017.
I got some stick for that but believe it or not, that post
was my way of showing how much I yearned for a side to be patriotic about.
Throughout my life I have heard stories about Euro 96 and
Stuart Pearce’s war cry, Italia 90 and Gazza’s tears, and not forgetting the
boys of 66 the greatest England side of them all.
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| Mark Leech/gettyimages |
I envied those who got to experience that and I wanted the
same for the younger generation of England fans.
Those tournaments took place in times of prosperity and optimism
in the form of ‘The Swinging Sixties, the Acid House era of the late ’80s and
early '90’s and the Britpop scene from 1993-1997.
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| Daily Mail |
That is not a coincidence. Football has the power to unite a
nation and that is what Gareth and his squad did in Russia.
During a time when the country was at odds over Brexit, the
likes of Kieran Trippier and Eric Dier allowed us to forget about how divided
we all were as we dared to dream of World Cup glory once more.
The moment that swung it for me was when Southgate walked
over to the England fans and screamed “Come on!” at the top of his lungs following
the win against Columbia on penalties in the Quarter-final.
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| Robbie Jay Barratt-AMA/gettyimages |
22 years of pent-up emotion poured out of him as he let go
of the guilt he felt for missing a decisive penalty at Euro 96 versus the
Germans.
The question is can England recreate scenes like that this
summer by lifting the trophy at Wembley? Do you still believe?
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