21 May 2024 , 13:00
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Marcus Rashford is the big name omission from England’s squad for the Euros.
England boss Gareth Southgate named 33 players for the training squad ahead of the friendlies with Bosnia & Herzegovina and Iceland. And there was no Rashford even in the larger squad which has to be trimmed down to 26 on Saturday, June 8.
That is the major shock as even though Rashford has been in poor form for Manchester United, he played at the last four major tournaments.
Jordan Henderson and Raheem Sterling have also missed out but, amid a host of injuries in defence, Southgate has named 11 defenders.
There are suprise calls for Liverpool pair Jarell Quansah and Curtis Jones while Adam Wharton is one of four Crystal Palace players to get the call alongside Dean Henderson, Eberechi Eze and Marc Guehi.
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Even though there are four keepers named, they will be trimmed to three while Luke Shaw gets in despite fears the United left back will not be fit.
But the 26 man squad allows Southgate to take a few risks on players. Interestingly, Trent Alexander-Arnold is listed as a midfielder in the squad.
Discussing Rashford's omission, Southgate said: "These are difficult calls. With Marcus I just feel other players in that area have had better seasons. It's as simple as that. This has been as complicated a group as I can remember picking."
Southgate has explained his decision to leave out Rashford (Getty Images)On Henderson, who misses his first major tournament since being picked for Euro 2012, Southgate added: "He given himself every chance. The determining factor was the injury he picked up in the last camp. He missed five weeks and wasn't able to get back up to the level of intensity. It was a difficult decision."
Elaborating on the absence of the former Premier League and Champions League-winning Liverpool captain, he added: "He will be a miss. He's an exceptional individual and fantastic human being. He's been in that leadership role for a long time. We've got young players with a lot of caps. There's no reason why young players can't lead."
Crystal Palace's Adam Wharton is one of the young players included (Getty Images)Shaw's fitness is set to be evaluated once he joins up with the camp, and Southgate admitted that the Manchester United left-back is touch and go for Germany.
"He's up against it," he said. "He's missed a lot of football. The fact that he has been our first choice in that position, we've probably given him a lot longer than we would have done. I'm not sure what's realistic at this time. I have to say, he's a long shot."
Luke Shaw's fitness is an issue for England despite his selection (Getty Images)Just six of the 33 players named in the squad were listed as midfielders, but Southgate played down the importance of how the list looks. He said: "I wouldn't be obsessed with where we've positioned the players. I write a list and other people put a heading on it. I don't know where players will be cut. In another couple of weeks we will be a lot clearer on a number of issues."
Southgate also admitted that there are still question marks over his final 26-man selection. "We've never had so many unknown situations," he said. "We've had tournaments where we've taken players where we know they will be back for a certain moment. We're used to dealing with it.
"I always like to give players as much clarity as possible. But on this occasion we're not able to do that."
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England's 33-man provisional squad for Euro 2024
Goalkeepers: Henderson (Crystal Palace), Pickford (Everton), Ramsdale (Arsenal), Trafford (Burnley)
Defenders: Branthwaite (Everton), Dunk (Brighton), Gomez (Liverpool), Guehi (Crystal Palace), Konsa (Aston Villa), Maguire (Manchester United), Quansah (Liverpool), Shaw (Manchester United), Stones (Manchester City), Trippier (Newcastle United), Walker (Manchester City)
Midfielders: Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Gallagher (Chelsea), Jones (Liverpool), Mainoo (Manchester United), Rice (Arsenal), Wharton (Crystal Palace)
Forwards: Bellingham (Real Madrid), Bowen (West Ham), Eze (Crystal Palace), Foden (Manchester City), Grealish (Manchester City), Gordon (Newcastle United), Kane (Bayern Munich), Maddison (Tottenham Hotspur), Palmer (Chelsea), Saka (Arsenal), Toney (Brentford), Watkins (Aston Villa).
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