Trent Alexander-Arnold’s England omission ‘is no surprise’ as Gareth Southgate has ‘never seemed convinced’ that the Liverpool star suits his system… but this could be ‘the jolt’ he needs to work on his defensive flaws, claims Jamie Carragher
- Carragher says Alexander-Arnold’s omission from the England side is no surprise
- Carragher says he was never even in the fight for the European championships
- The pundit says Southgate is looking for a ‘a traditional right-back or wing-back’
- However, he believes this decision will encourage Alexander-Arnold to develop
Jamie Carragher says Trent Alexander-Arnold’s omission from Gareth Southgate’s England squad is ‘no surprise’ as he claims the defender was never ‘in the fight to make it to the European championships’.
Carragher says Southgate is looking for a ‘a traditional right-back or wing-back’ for the World Cup qualifiers and that Alexander-Arnold’s ‘playmaker’ style is not well suited to the current England system.
The Sky Sport pundit does, however, believe Southgate’s decision will benefit Alexander-Arnold in the long run, as it will force him to ‘work on those defensive areas which need improving’.
Jamie Carragher says Trent Alexander-Arnold’s omission from the England side is ‘no surprise’
Carragher told The Telegraph: ‘Trent Alexander-Arnold’s omission from the England squad is no surprise to me. I’ve had my suspicions for a while that the Liverpool defender is in a fight to make it to the European championships.
‘Southgate has never seemed convinced Alexander-Arnold suits England’s system, or to be more specific how often he likes to switch between a back four and three centre-backs. Southgate does not want a playmaker at right-back. He wants a traditional right-back or wing-back.
Carragher says Alexander-Arnold was never even in the fight for the European championships
The SKy Sports pundit says Southgate is looking for a ‘a traditional right-back or wing-back’
England squad in full
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Manchester United), Sam Johnstone (West Bromwich Albion), Nick Pope (Burnley)
Defenders: Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Conor Coady (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Eric Dier (Tottenham Hotspur), Reece James (Chelsea), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City), Kieran Trippier (Atletico Madrid), Kyle Walker (Manchester City)
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jesse Lingard (West Ham United, loan from Manchester United), Mason Mount (Chelsea), Kalvin Phillips (Leeds United), Declan Rice (West Ham United), James Ward-Prowse (Southampton)
Forwards: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton), Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Raheem Sterling (Manchester City), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)
‘He won’t feel this way today, but Southgate’s decision can do him more good than harm. It will give his career a jolt and force him to work on those defensive areas which need improvement. Because they do. He has no better manager in the world to turn to than Klopp to guide him through that.
‘Trent is a fantastic player – one of the best young talents in European football, let alone the Premier League. This feels like one of those moments he will look back upon as firing him up to unlock more of his incredible talent.
‘Being left out of the next few England games is no more than a bump in the road in a career which has already hit the greatest heights at club level. He will be back in an England shirt soon enough.’
Right-back Alexander-Arnold wasn’t named in the 26-man Three Lions squad for the trio of World Cup qualifiers against San Marino, Albania and Poland later this month.
Explaining the decision to leave Alexander-Arnold out and select Kieran Trippier, Kyle Walker and Reece James in the position instead, Southgate said the 22-year-old’s form hadn’t reached the heights of recent seasons.
‘In some areas of the pitch we have incredible competition for places,’ Southgate said.
He says Alexander-Arnold’s ‘playmaker’ style is not well suited to the current England system
However, he believes this decision will encourage Alexander-Arnold to work on his game
‘I don’t think he has played to the level he found in the last couple of years but I think he is getting close to that now. He has taken steps in the right direction.
‘I have made that same call to Kyle [Walker] and Kieran [Trippier] in the past and their response was a good one. I am certain Trent will play a big part in the future.’
Alexander-Arnold, who has been capped 12 times for England, will be disappointed with the decision after contributing one goal and five assists in 34 Liverpool appearances this season.
