Despite omitting Trent Alexander-Arnold from England’s last game before the World Cup, Gareth Southgate insists the right-back is not out of his plans.
Southgate grabbed the headlines on Monday morning when it emerged that Alexander-Arnold had been left out of his 23-man squad to face Germany at Wembley.
The right-back had not been used during the 1-0 loss to Italy three days earlier, and his absence from the matchday group has led many to believe he will miss the World Cup in Qatar.
There is still a compelling case to believe he will not take the plane, with Southgate apparently preferring Kieran Trippier, Reece James and Kyle Walker, but the England manager has denied he is out of the running.
“We have a big team with us and we have four right-backs who are of great quality,” he told Channel 4 before Monday’s 3-3 draw.
“At the moment, Keiran Trippier is playing exceptionally well and Reece James has been one of the standout players in the league at the start of the season.
“But we know that Trent is a very, very good footballer and that is why we have chosen him in the team.”
Alexander-Arnold wasn’t the only player to sit out one game and sit on the bench for another, with Ivan Toney, Ben Chilwell, Marc Guehi, Fikayo Tomori, Jarrod Bowen and James Ward-Prowse in the same situation.
A total of 16 players took part in the two ties, which served as the final warm-up before the World Cup, while a further five – Trippier, Aaron Ramsdale, Dean Henderson, Conor Coady and Tammy Abraham – were unused substitutes for both games.
“We have a lot of good players on the bench, but we thought tonight we wanted to move the bench a little bit,” Southgate continued.
“Because I didn’t want players sitting in the stands for two games in a row.
“We took a big group, which has been great in training camp and working with the players, and basically we wanted to keep everyone involved.”
With a 26-man squad to be named for the World Cup in November, there is still scope for Alexander-Arnold to be included, but with James starting against Italy and Germany, his place is by no means assured.
