The England squad has not been famous for recruiting world-class players in recent years. This week however, Southgate has sunk to a new low.
October 3, 2017 09:29Following injuries to Fabian Delph and Phil Jones, 21-year-old Harry Winks has been called up for the games against Slovenia and Lithuania.
With only four Spurs starts ever, Winks will not believe his luck. The standard and experience required to play for England is telling of how poor the side is, and is a sign for us to lower our expectations.
Pundits and commentators always enjoy talking about what an honour wearing an England shirt used to be. The golden days of English football, when players would fight for their club to win a cap for their country.
I myself have never been a fan of this patriotism, but do feel nostalgic for the days, most of which I was too young to remember, when a player could not get a call-up after playing 26 Premier League matches, 22 of which as a substitute.
I yearn for the days when Theo Walcott would fail to earn a place in the World Cup squad, not because of his lack of ability or experience, but because he simply wasn’t good enough.
Now, if you are English and have touched the turf of a Premier League club’s stadium, you can expect a call.
And if Winks’ inexplicable inclusion is not telling enough of the dire state of our national side, take a look at who he replaced. When browsing the football news on my phone, as I do at unnecessarily regular intervals, I was struck by the headline ‘ENGLAND STAR OUT WITH INJURY’.
Of course I, as any avid England fan would be, was mortified. Who could it be? The word ‘star’ just about limited my options to more than one player, and thus I was forced to succumb to the clickbait. I should have known better.
I was to find out that this so called ‘star’, this world-class, innovative and creative mastermind, was Fabian Delph. Yes, Fabian Delph, the man who has accumulated just 26 starts and four goals since joining Manchester City in 2015, has a regular spot in the England squad.
If anyone thinks England has a chance in the World Cup next year, think again. Messi hasn’t even won the World Cup, it’s not quite the turn of Harry Winks.