Who is most at risk of missing out on England’s 26-man squad?

Gareth Southgate is set to announce his final 26-man England squad for Euro 2020 at 5pm this evening.

The Three Lions boss named a provisional 33-man squad last week, with 20 of those names currently training ahead of the Euro 2020 warm-up match against Austria tomorrow.

That means that seven names must be cut from the final squad.

Who is most at risk of missing out? We’ve taken a look at the situation in each position:

Goalkeepers

One of the major talking points from the provisional squad was Burnley goalkeeper Nick Pope’s absence, with the 29-year-old having undergone minor knee surgery last week.

That meant a maiden call-up for Sheffield United stopper Aaron Ramsdale, who impressed in the final few weeks of the Premier League campaign.

West Brom’s Sam Johnstone was also called up. The 28-year-old was named in the squad for Nations League clashes against San Marino, Albania and Poland back in March.

England squad regulars Jordan Pickford and Dean Henderson were also named. Pickford has been England’s number one since before the 2018 World Cup when available, whilst Henderson has one cap to his name.

Southgate’s decision on who to cut seems likely to be between Johnstone and Ramsdale.

Defenders

Southgate named a total of 12 defenders in his provisional squad, including four right-backs.

ESPN have reported that Trent Alexander-Arnold is set to be the one of the four to miss out barring a late injury, with Reece James, Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier set to get the nod instead.

On the other side of the pitch, both Ben Chilwell and Luke Shaw are likely to be included. If he is chosen, Chilwell would join up with the England squad having lifted the Champions League trophy for the first time with Chelsea on Saturday.

In central defence, much could depend on the fitness of Manchester United captain Harry Maguire, who suffered an ankle injury last month and missed the Europa League final against Villarreal.

John Stones, Conor Coady and Tyrone Mings have been regulars in England squads over the past year, with question marks over whether Brighton’s Ben White or Everton’s Ben Godfrey will be selected in the final squad.

With Southgate having utilised both three and four-man defences during his time as Three Lions boss, could he opt with five central defenders? If Maguire is passed fit – or is given the opportunity to prove his fitness before the tournament – it seems likely that White or Godfrey could miss out.

Midfielders

The Athletic have reported that both James Ward-Prowse and Jesse Lingard are set to be omitted from the final 26-man squad.

Another fitness doubt is Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson, with the 31-year-old having not featured for club or country since sustaining a groin injury in February. He was, however, named on Liverpool’s bench for their final Premier League fixture of the season against Crystal Palace.

Declan Rice, Mason Mount and Kalvin Phillips have all established themselves as important figures in the current England set-up. However, Phillips suffered a shoulder injury during Leeds’s final league fixture of the season against West Bromwich Albion.

Jude Bellingham has hugely impressed in his debut season for Borussia Dortmund. He was named in the previous England squad back in March.

Forwards

England confirmed this morning that Manchester United’s Mason Greenwood has withdrawn from the squad due to injury.

Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford and Raheem Sterling are all stars within the England setup. You would expect the trio of Phil Foden, Jack Grealish and Jadon Sancho to be selected as well.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin will surely operate as back-up centre forward to Kane.

That leaves Bukayo Saka and Ollie Watkins potentially at risk of missing out on the final 26-man squad. Saka has four senior England caps and enjoyed an excellent season for Arsenal, whilst Watkins equally impressed for Aston Villa and made his England debut back in March.

There’s certainly going to be some difficult decisions made prior to tonight’s 5pm squad announcement.

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