Gary Neville believes that Gareth Southgate has painted himself into a bit of a corner with his England midfield selection for this summer's Euros – but in a way that will please many Three Lions fans.
Some England supporters have been crying out for Southgate to go more attacking with his selections in the middle of the park for years, which does sort of raise the question of who is supposed to do the actual defending part of the job, but dream selections are not always based on reality.
But by leaving out Jordan Henderson and Kalvin Phillips, Neville believes that Southgate has signalled he may be willing to take the shackles off a bit at Euro 2024.
Gary Neville thinks Gareth Southgate has removed temptation for England to be conservative at Euro 2024
Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet, Neville said: “The one thing I would say about Jordan Henderson, universally everyone has been crying out for Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden [the midfield three]. And everyone’s always thought, ‘oh Kalvin Phillips will come in and play alongside Declan Rice, or Jordan [Henderson] will’.
“We are actually in a situation now where Gareth Southgate, just by the personnel he’s got, is going to be forced to play an attacking, almost like a dream midfield really if you think about it: Rice, Foden, Mainoo, Bellingham.
“Talking about these players now that England are going to have to play, because they haven’t got any other options…that is exactly what everyone’s been crying out for.
“He hasn’t even got the temptation to go back to his bench and think, ‘I’ll put Jordan [Henderson] on, I’ll put Kalvin [Phillips] on.
“That is the one thing out of this, I’m surprised we are in this position because I thought Gareth would just go for one more experienced player.”
England's other midfield options include Trent Alexander-Arnold, Conor Gallagher, Cole Palmer, and uncapped duo Curtis Jones and Adam Wharton.
More England stories
Jordan Henderson has missed out on an England first with his omission from the 2024 squad
Gareth Southgate's 5 biggest omissions from his provisional England Euro 2024 squad
England squad for Euro 2024 announced - with Gareth Southgate making some controversial decisions
