[ad_pod ]
Harry Winks has been dropped from the England squad along with Nathan Redmond, Kieran Trippier and James Ward-Prowse. Though three of those decisions can somewhat be understood, it’s the exclusion of Tottenham’s number 8 that creates the most confusion.
On the chalkboard
Gareth Southgate and his wonderful waistcoat were the heroes of last summer. He was the architect in what turned out to be a truly amazing World Cup campaign for England in which they reached the semi-finals and did the nation and it’s upcoming young talent very proud – a sign of things to come.
Just as people thought the new romance with the national side was starting to be forgotten, Southgate did it again by guiding his brilliant young Lions to the Nations League finals in Portugal, with a class and energetic style of play.
The promotion of younger players including Joe Gomez, Declan Rice and Jadon Sancho alongside a move from the 3-5-2 formation to a more sensible 4-3-3 suggests the ex-Middlesbrough boss had a genuine plan in place for his squad and the talent that was due to come through it.
With the Nations League less than two weeks away though, Southgate had to make a bold decision and opted to not include Winks in the squad despite him expecting to be fit for Tottenham’s Champions League final against Liverpool.
Winks the heart of England
The decision to exclude Winks seems to show a complete lack of appreciation for how important a role he plays. That’s not to say Southgate doesn’t appreciate Winks: he does, he’s said so. The decision also doesn’t mean he’s not trying to play attractive football, a style dictated by creative midfielders to feed England’s fantastic forwards.
However, with Winks set to be fit for Tottenham this weekend, and the sheer fact that there is absolutely no one who can play the way he does, he’s surely worth the gamble for Southgate. Do we need Jordan Henderson, Eric Dier, Declan Rice and Fabian Delph when they’re all perfectly capable of playing the exact same destructive role?
This isn’t a month long tournament, it’s a guaranteed two games. There’s no need to rest players, rotate, or consider the prospect of a 22-man squad being far more detrimental than having the full 23 if Winks were to get injured again.
Should Spurs risk Harry Kane in the Champions League final? A Spurs fan monders the dilemma in the video below…
Winks is worth the risk. No player in the England squad picks up possession and plays forward passes, dictating play, as well as he does. In fact, no one comes close. Henderson is an industrious midfielder who at best provides a good box-to-box alternative, but in terms of a deep-lying playmaker gracing the squad, England are severely lacking.
Winks is a huge, huge miss for England. Leaving him out undermines how important he truly is to this squad and how important that role is in executing the sort of football we want to play.