Trent Alexander-Arnold is set to be dropped for England's final group game against Slovenia on Tuesday night.
Alexander-Arnold has started the first two matches at Euro 2024 in central midfield, but the Liverpool star will be replaced by Conor Gallagher in Cologne. The Athletic reports that Southgate has made the call after replacing Alexander-Arnold with the Chelsea midfielder against Serbia and Denmark.
Southgate admitted in the wake of their disappointing 1-1 draw with Denmark on Thursday night that he had not found the right balance in midfield. “We have been trying to find a solution in midfield for seven or eight years. If we hadn't had Declan Rice, I don't know where we'd have been," the England boss said.
“Unfortunately, Kalvin (Phillips) wasn’t possible for us for this tournament and Hendo (Jordan Henderson) the same, so we're trying to find something different.
“Some of that has worked, some of that hasn't worked so well - but over the years that's been a consistent problem we've tried to find the best way of solving and we've got to do that in the coming weeks as well.
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“One of our biggest problems was we weren’t pressing well enough as a team, so Trent had all sorts of problems to solve without the ball - and most of the time he did really, really well.
“But clearly you're going to see different pictures when you’re in there every week. He’s had moments where he's played the passes that we thought he could. I understand you're always going to ask me about individuals, but the team didn't function today. That's my responsibility.”
Conor Gallagher has come on for Trent Alexander-Arnold in the last two games (AFP via Getty Images)HAVE YOUR SAY! Is Gareth Southgate making the right move? What changes would you like to see? Comment below.
Alexander-Arnold plays at right-back for Liverpool, but has been deployed in central midfield by Southgate due to his passing range. But after bright spells in the 1-0 win over Serbia, he struggled against Denmark and was hooked for Gallagher in the second half.
Further changes could be made to the side which started against the Danes, with Luke Shaw now fit and available following a long spell on the sidelines with a hamstring injury. Shaw trained fully with the squad on Monday morning and could take Kieran Trippier's spot at left-back.
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