James Maddison: He started Leicester in the match against Ukraine | Football news

news7h03/26/2023

13 6 minutes read

James Maddison during an England training session

James Maddison is expected to make his debut for England against Ukraine at Wembley on Sunday – with the Leicester City midfielder set up on the left flank.

There were calls for Maddison to be included in the England squad for the World Cup but when he did, injury prevented him from playing a minute in Qatar.

Since making his national team debut as a substitute in a match against Montenegro three and a half years ago, injuries and selection dilemmas have kept Maddison out of his country. .

He played only 35 minutes for the senior national team in his career.

But Sky Sports News has been told his attitude in Qatar – remaining positive and supportive of his team-mates, even when he doesn’t get the chance to play – has impressed boss Gareth Southgate and coaches the rest of the England team.

His performances in last week’s training were similar, and the 26-year-old now looks set to start in Euro 2024 qualifying against Ukraine, winning his first win since 2019.

He is expected to receive the nod in place of Jack Grealish, who has struggled to make an impact against Italy’s physical defence, to the left of the forward trio.

Southgate: Toney in our thoughts | Bellingham, Henderson fit, James absent

South Gate speak Ivan Toney was “a lot” in his mind for the game against Ukraine.

The British boss also confirmed Jordan Henderson And Jude Bellingham fit to feature in the Group C match at Wembley, after news of Reece James‘ withdrew from the team earlier on Saturday.

Regarding Brentford’s potential selection of striker Toney, Southgate said: “He’s played really well. We really like him and he’s very interested in us.”

Asked about fitness concerns in his squad, the England manager said: “Jordan didn’t train much last week with Liverpool because of illness, but he’s fine to play.”

Regarding Bellingham, Kalvin Phillips and the rest of the team, Southgate added: “They’re all fine. Obviously, with Kalvin, he played the first 90 minutes of the game against Italy a little bit, so we’ll have to hit it. value the freshness, but that’s like the whole team.

“We had to strike the right balance of continuity and consistency, but also novelty.”

Should Southgate call in more for the depleted England squad?

Sky Sports News Senior Correspondent Rob Dorsett:

After the crucial win at Napoli – England’s first win in Italy in 62 years, and a match in which Harry Kane made history of his own – Gareth Southgate couldn’t even fill his name on the bench for home match against Ukraine.

He has only 18 outfield players to choose from. Reece James withdrew due to a minor hamstring problem along with the withdrawals due to injuries to Marcus Rashford, Mason Mount and Nick Pope, and Luke Shaw was suspended.

Southgate rarely convenes late, but his refusal to do so here is odd. The England coach explained it by saying that it is very difficult to get players into the middle of the camp, when they are not up to speed with the other players.

Normally, he would attack the U21 players, but he said because their match was one day ahead of the senior team, that was also problematic.

At least England’s problems in midfield have eased.

Jordan Henderson arrived at St George’s Park with a pale skin tone as he recovered, Jude Bellingham limped off at Napoli with a knee injury, and Kalvin Phillips played almost twice as many minutes against Italy as he did in time. He coached Manchester City for the whole season.

Southgate says all three are good against Ukraine, although he will consider the freshness of those players. That indicates that Henderson and Bellingham were probably lined up with Declan Rice, when Phillips was given a break.

Surely Kane will start all over again. He wants to play every minute for England, and surpassing Wayne Rooney’s all-time goalscoring record has not dampened his desire to score. Tottenham’s absence from action until a week on Monday means there is no reasonable argument about load management, although it will be his second 90 minutes in three days.

Southgate has no problem with Rashford’s trip to New York

Southgate has defended Marcus Rashford’s decision to go to the United States after withdrawing from the England squad through injury.

Few in world football are in higher form than the young Manchester United forward, who has scored 19 goals in 25 appearances since his impressive World Cup display.

Qatar saw Rashford make his first England game since he missed a penalty in the Euro 2020 final against Italy, followed by a challenging year in terms of form and fitness.

The 25-year-old was called up for a European qualifying double header in March against Italy and Ukraine, only to withdraw after receiving a knockout in the FA Cup quarter-final against Fulham.

Rashford was in New York as England won 2-1 at Napoli, where Southgate said “when you don’t have him regularly it’s like losing the game”.

The English boss clarified: “I was asked the day before if we missed him and that is really the semantics of the word. But he is in good form, we would love to have him. as an option for this camp but we don’t have him yet.

“I always have to think about what is the best solution and what is the opportunity for others.”

Asked about Rashford walking around New York instead of linking up with the England team, Southgate said: “I don’t think the levels are quite the same!

“Once he’s dropped from the squad, how he uses his time is entirely up to him.

“The players don’t have a lot of rest, so I think for all of them, once they have some time… I’m sure our players will fly anywhere. after tomorrow’s game. If they have 48 hours on their current schedule, I think they have to take advantage of it.”

‘We hope Rashford’s good form can continue’

This is not the first time Rashford has withdrawn from the squad, but Southgate dismissed the suggestion that it could affect his chances of being called up in the future.

“We always give judgment on how people play and he obviously played a lot for us,” he said. “He has made more than 50 caps for England and almost 50 of them have been since I was manager.

“I’ve known him for a long time. I know his ability. It’s good to see him in his current scoring form. When he has his chance at the moment you would expect him to score. .

“There’s been a period in the last couple of years where he hasn’t been as hot and it’s frustrating for people to watch but he’s in good form and we hope that can be done. continue.”