With Trent Alexander-Arnold ruled out of the European Championship with a thigh injury, England manager Gareth Southgate now has a decision to make on who is called up in his place.
The Liverpool defender pulled up late on in Wednesday’s win over Austria and the Football Association announced on Thursday he would miss the finals.
Here, the PA news agency takes a look at the five outfield options – originally cut from the provisional squad – who are available to be drafted in by Southgate.
Ben Godfrey (Everton, age 23, caps 1, goals 0)
Godfrey’s versatility may have made him a tempting choice for the Three Lions boss, who would have been aware of the defender due to his rise through the England age groups. A regular with the Under-21s, he played twice at their European Championship in March and caught the eye across several positions for Everton. His lack of experience compared to his rivals at centre-back would have counted against him but he did make his debut in the recent friendly against Austria.
Ben White (Brighton, 23, 1, 0)
Extremely proud moment 🦁🦁🦁@Englandpic.twitter.com/aDfwU4AdKf— Benjamin White (@ben6white) May 30, 2021
The 23-year-old was a surprise inclusion in Southgate’s bigger group, but was rewarded for an impressive debut season in the top flight. The centre-back had also impressed during Leeds’ promotion-winning campaign two years ago, with his flexibility viewed as a big asset. While White is adept in a back three or back four, it was always expected this tournament was a little too early and, like Godfrey, made his bow off the bench in the Austria win.
James Ward-Prowse (Southampton, 26, 7, 1)
The dead-ball specialist has been in and around the England camp since Southgate took over but was not taken to the World Cup three years ago and has missed out again. While the Saints captain scored during the fixtures back in March, he has ultimately paid the price for Jordan Henderson’s return to fitness and the emergence of Kalvin Phillips of Leeds.
Jesse Lingard (Manchester United, 28, 28, 4)
Southgate says @JesseLingard, @Prowsey16 and Ollie Watkins were all given the option to leave the group after missing out on the final squad – but they've all chosen to remain for this week's pre-#EURO2020 friendlies.— England (@England) June 1, 2021
A successful loan with West Ham got the playmaker’s season back on track and he earned a place in Southgate’s most recent squad, but the national team manager did admit the United ace was “lucky” to be involved with injuries elsewhere opening up a space. While Lingard finished the campaign with nine goals, too much competition in the attacking areas has seen him drop out.
Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa, 25, 2, 1)
Perhaps the unluckiest of the seven to miss out with England only taking two centre forwards, Watkins enjoyed a memorable international debut in March when he netted against San Marino and struck 14 times during his first campaign in the Premier League. But the former Brentford striker has not made the cut with more versatile options in attack selected instead.
