Before Friday’s deadline, Jack Grealish was not given a guarantee by Gareth Southgate that he would be included in the England team for the European Championship.
The Manchester City player is included in Southgate’s 33-man squad for the summer tournament in Germany; however, on Friday, that group must be reduced to a final 26-man selection. When England kicks up their tournament preparations on Monday night in Newcastle against Bosnia and Herzegovina, Grealish will be hoping for an opportunity to show off his skills.
After a disappointing season for City that saw him mostly on the bench for the final games and necessitating discussions with Pep Guardiola on his future, the former Villa player reported early for duty in an attempt to guarantee his spot. Even though the 29-year-old has shown flashes of his potential this season, there is intense competition for offensive positions, and when pressed, Southgate would not confirm his plans for Grealish.
We’re not really defining that yet, in my opinion. We are aware of our likely location,” he remarked. Because we keep sitting down and saying, “Okay, if it’s this or this,” it’s difficult to be nearly so exact. Subsequently, a different person in the group remarks, “Yeah, but what about if that player gets hurt there or doesn’t recover?” Does this area require another one?
We have time on our side this week. The time is worthwhile. There’s a chance that [the Bosnia and Herzegovina game] will cause another physical problem, on top of everything else. Thankfully, we’re accustomed to handling all of this, so we’re not concerned.
After participating in the FA Cup Final loss to United and later joining the rest of the team, John Stones will miss the friendly. Although Stones is pursuing a personal programme, he is anticipated to make the final squad.
But, Southgate is beset by injury concerns. Anthony Gordon, a winger for Newcastle United, and Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw of Manchester United are both struggling to return to fitness. Due to an injury, Bukayo Saka missed the final game of the season as well.
We’re happy with the improvement that all three players—Maguire, Shaw, and Gordon—have made, Southgate continued. “They won’t be participating in the match against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“John Stones and Bukayo are the same. John should adhere to an individual routine for the next few days as he reported a little later and hasn’t worked with us in a few days.”
