Football Matters: England's Euro 2016 Squad

The Squad

Goalkeepers

Joe Hart – Manchester City – 29 years old – 57 caps

Fraser Forster – Southampton – 28 years old – 5 caps

Tom Heaton – Burnley – 30 years old – Uncapped

Right Backs

Nathaniel Clyne – Liverpool – 25 years old – 11 caps

Kyle Walker – Tottenham Hotspur – 25 years old – 14 caps

Left Backs

Danny Rose – Tottenham Hotspur – 25 years old – 2 caps

Ryan Bertrand – Southampton – 26 years old – 7 caps

Centre Backs

Gary Cahill – Chelsea – 30 years old – 41 caps, 3 goals

Chris Smalling – Manchester United – 26 years old – 23 caps

Eric Dier – Tottenham Hotspur – 22 years old – 4 caps, 1 goal

John Stones – Everton – 21 years old – 8 caps

Central Midfield

Danny Drinkwater – Leicester City – 26 years old – 1 cap

Fabian Delph – Manchester City – 26 years old – 9 caps

Jordan Henderson – Liverpool – 25 years old – 23 caps

Jack Wilshere – Arsenal – 24 years old – 28 caps, 2 goals

James Milner – Liverpool – 30 years old – 58 caps, 1 goal

Dele Alli – Tottenham Hotspur – 20 years old – 6 caps, 1 goal

Attacking Midfield

Adam Lallana – Liverpool – 28 years old – 21 caps

Ross Barkley – Everton – 22 years old – 21 caps, 2 goals

Raheem Sterling – Manchester City – 21 years old – 20 caps, 2 goals

Andros Townsend – Newcastle United – 24 years old – 10 caps, 3 goals

Wayne Rooney – Manchester United – 30 years old – 109 caps, 51 goals

Strikers

Daniel Sturridge – Liverpool – 26 years old – 17 caps, 5 goals

Harry Kane – Tottenham Hotspur – 22 years old – 10 caps, 4 goals

Jamie Vardy – Leicester City – 29 years old – 6 caps, 2 goals

Marcus Rashford – Manchester United – 18 years old – Uncapped

Stats and Facts

The first thing I notice when I look at Roy Hodgson's 26 man squad is that it's largely young and inexperienced at international level.

Of the 23 outfield players there are 18 aged 26 or younger with only Gary Cahill, James Milner, Adam Lallana, Wayne Rooney and Jamie Vardy over that mark. A look a the list in order of age below shows the number of your players Roy has included as the nation looks to develop for the future.

30 – Rooney, Milner, Cahill, Heaton

29 – Vardy, Hart

28 – Lallana, Forster

26 – Sturridge, Delph, Drinkwater, Smalling, Bertrand

25 – Henderson, Rose, Clyne, Walker

24 – Townsend, Wilshere

22 – Kane, Dier

21 – Barkley, Sterling, Stones

20 – Alli

18 - Rashford

In the entire squad there are only 10 players with 20 caps or more and only 7 with more than 21. The list below showing players in order of caps received shows the inexperience in the majority of the squad but at least they will develop at the tournament one way or the other.

109 – Rooney

58 – Milner

57 – Hart

41 – Cahill

28 – Wilshere

23 – Henderson, Smalling

21 – Lallana, Barkley

20 – Sterling

17 – Sturridge

14 – Walker

11 - Clyne

10 – Kane, Townsend

9 – Delph

8 – Stones

7 - Bertrand

6 – Vardy, Alli

5 - Forster

4 – Dier

2 - Rose

1 - Drinkwater

None – Rashford & Heaton

Only Rooney (51) has scored more than 5 international goals with the nearest being Sturridge on 5. This is surely the lowest number of international goals (Rooney aside) that we've started a tournament with.

51 – Rooney

5 – Sturridge

4 – Kane

3 – Townsend, Cahill

2 – Vardy, Sterling, Wilshere, Barkley

1 – Alli, Dier, Milner

The final list to look at is the clubs where Hodgson has selected his players from. There still remains a bias towards the 'big' clubs in selecting players based on history rather than form. At least there are Leicester and Spurs players in the team but there are none from West Ham with several possibilities being overlooked.

Arsenal - Wilshere

Burnley – Heaton

Chelsea – Cahill

Everton – Stones, Barkley

Leicester City – Drinkwater, Vardy

Liverpool – Clyne, Henderson, Milner, Lallana, Sturridge

Manchester City – Hart, Delph, Sterling

Manchester United – Smalling, Rooney, Rashford

Newcastle United - Townsend

Southampton – Forster, Bertrand

Tottenham Hotspur – Walker, Rose, Dier, Alli, Kane

My Review of Selected Players and Who I Would Pick

I'll look at each position in turn with who has been included or excluded and I'll also consider which three players I expect Roy to drop. I'll finish with the 23 that I would take to the Euros myself.

Goalkeepers

Hart, Forster, Heaton

I think this is one selection that writes itself with only the third choice really being debatable. The injury to Jack Butland eliminated any argument for the deputy role and left the door open for Forster. Could Butland have challenged Hart for the #1 jersey? I don't think so in Hodgson's eyes and he would opt for Hart's experience but he is error prone and when they do occur they're usually as important as they are damaging. The Manchester City keeper made his England debut back in 2008 and at still only 29 years old he could be the number one for some time yet. My hope is that we get as far as we can in the tournament without a Hart clanger. I was a little surprised that Roy opted for Heaton over Ben Foster to be fair. It's very unlikely the Burnley keeper will see any action but at least Foster has international experience with eight caps.

Other possibilities were Derby's Scott Carson who has four caps, QPR's Robert Green with twelve and Norwich City's John Ruddy has one. Bolton's Ben Amos was once talked about as a future England keeper but they've had a dreadful season and the 26 year-old's stock has plummeted since he left Manchester United.

(Player – Club – Age – Caps & Goals - League Games & Goals 2015/16 – Overall Games & Goals 2015/16)

Joe Hart – Manchester City – 29yo – 57/0 – 36/0 - 41/0

Fraser Forster – Southampton – 28yo – 5/0 – 15/0 – 15/0

Tom Heaton – Burnley – 30yo – 0/0 – 46/0 – 48/0

Jack Butland – Stoke City – 23yo – 4/0 - 31/0 – 35/0 Ben Foster – West Bromwich Albion – 33yo – 8/0 – 11/0 – 15/0

Scott Carson – Derby County – 30yo – 4/0 – 34/0 – 35/0

Rob Green – Queens Park Rangers – 36yo – 12/0 – 24/0 – 25/0

John Ruddy – Norwich City – 29yo – 1/0 – 21/0 – 22/0

Who I'd Take: Joe Hart, Fraser Forster, Ben Foster My Starting Player: Joe Hart

Right Back

Clyne, Walker

Ever since Gary Neville vacated the role he'd held down for the best part of ten years we've been looking for a regular right back for England. Glen Johnson held down the role for a while as he amassed 54 caps but his move from Liverpool to Stoke City in 2015 along with a string of poor performances for the Three Lions appear to have ended the 31 year-old's England career. There have been a number of young players looking to make the England right back role their own and it's difficult to see a clear favourite. I like both of Hodgson's choices in Clyne and Walker but the other candidates, either now or in the next few years, include Kieran Trippier, Carl Jenkinson, Calum Chambers and Jon Flanagan.

Of the two players selected Clyne is my favourite player but he is coming off the back of an indifferent season with Liverpool and with Spurs finishing third after a wonderful season (bar the last couple of games after they knew the title was gone) he should be carrying the best form into the tournament. Will that loss of momentum at Tottenham affect him though? The pre-tournament friendlies will be a good way to assess that. Clyne and Walker are both the same age with a similar number of caps so international experience is not something that can separate them. Personally I'd start Clyne against Russia on June 11th.

Trippier has been Walker's team-mate at Spurs in their terrific season and has played excellently too when called upon. He only played six times in the league but was Mauricio Pochettino's right back for the international games. I thought he was one of the outstanding players in Burnley's 2014/15 relegation season and it's a shame he has such great competition for his position at Spurs.

Jenkinson is another player who knows all about competition for places and has been out on loan at West Ham from Arsenal while his team-mate Chambers stayed to fight with David Bellerin for his place. Jenkinson played for both England and Finland at U21 level due to his Finnish mother and may well wonder if he made the right choice committing to England with a full debut in 2012 when he hasn't been capped since. With Bellerin the preferred league choice for Arsene Wenger it has been the domestic cups and Champions League where Chambers has gained experience this year. Flanagan earned his first cap against Ecuador in a 2014 friendly but has since suffered serious knee problems which have kept him out of the Liverpool squad for about 20 months. He returned to the side this year though and maybe can get back to challenging for international honours again.

(Player – Club – Age – Caps & Goals - BPL Games & Goals 2015/16 – Overall Games & Goals 2015/16)

Nathaniel Clyne – Liverpool – 25yo – 11/0 - 33/1 – 52/2

Kyle Walker – Tottenham Hotspur – 25yo – 14/0 – 27/1 – 29/1 Kieran Trippier – Tottenham Hotspur – 25yo – 0/0 – 6/1 – 19/1

Carl Jenkinson – West Ham United (loan from Arsenal) – 24yo – 1/0 – 20/2 – 23/2

Calum Chambers – Arsenal – 21yo – 3/0 – 12/0 – 22/1

Jon Flanagan – Liverpool – 23yo – 1/0 – 5/0 – 8/0

Who I'd Take: Nathaniel Clyne, Kyle Walker My Starting Player: Nathaniel Clyne

Left Back

Bertrand, Rose

The big choice here for Roy has been in leaving out Leighton Baines who has been a reliable left back for England since Ashley Cole retired. The 31 year-old hasn't had the greatest of season's at Everton though and now that age is against him the international career could be over.

Bertrand and Rose lack international experience with only nine caps between them but have both had great seasons. I give Bertrand the edge personally as I feel he has consistently well for a longer period of time. I was surprised when Chelsea sold him to Southampton and still feel they'd be a much stronger side with Cesar Azpilicueta on the right and Bertrand on the left. Rose has put in some strong performances this season but I certainly see him as the back-up myself.

I think Gibbs has been unlucky to miss out to Rose really. Gibbs has more Premier League and European experience whereas Rose has played more at England U21 level. I would have opted for Gibbs even though he was fighting a losing battle with Nacho Monreal for the Arsenal left back spot. One player who I think certainly would have been in the mix with a bit more match fitness is Luke Shaw. It was always touch and go as to whether the former Southampton left back would be fit by the end of the season. He last played for Manchester United on 15th September 2015 although he is now back in training. I think Aaron Cresswell deserves a mention after another excellent season with West Ham United. He joined the Hammers at the start of the 2014/15 season and has been a regular for them ever since with some fantastic games. Finally a nod to young Brendan Galloway who is starting to emerge at Everton with a great future ahead of him. With Baines for competition he still managed to feature in nineteen games for the Goodison Park side last season and although he is yet to feature for the England U21 side I think he could be one to watch closely in a couple of years.

Although we don't have a lot of experience at left back if you exclude Baines I do believe we have a good batch of young players. The risk is that with six players I've mentioned with only thirty caps between them that Hodgson or his successor chop and change the player starting at left back too much and the position loses consistency.

(Player – Club – Age – Caps & Goals - BPL Games & Goals 2015/16 – Overall Games & Goals 2015/16)

Ryan Bertrand – Southampton – 26yo – 7/0 – 27/1 – 28/1 Danny Rose – Tottenham Hotspur – 25yo – 2/0 – 18/1 – 24/1

Kieran Gibbs – Arsenal – 26yo – 10/0 – 15/1 – 28/1 Luke Shaw – Manchester United – 20yo – 6/0 – 5/0 – 8/0

Leighton Baines – Everton – 31yo – 30/1 – 18/2 – 23/2

Aaron Cresswell – West Ham United – 26yo – 0/0 – 37/2 – 47/2

Brendan Galloway – Everton – 20yo – 0/0 – 15/0 – 19/0

Who I'd Take: Ryan Bertrand, Kieran Gibbs My Starting Player: Ryan Bertrand

Centre Back

Cahill, Smalling, Stones, Dier

When a lot of people are listing the present squad they're putting Eric Dier as central midfield however simply for the purpose of assessing the squad I'm counting him as a centre back. I believe every tournament squad should have at least two players for every position (therefore with two centre backs in the starting eleven we should have four in the squad). As none of the full backs can play there then Dier really could be a utility player of the highest order in France. I think Cahill and Smalling will be the starting partnership although the former hasn't had a great season at Chelsea (who has?). The fact that he is one of the few experienced outfield players in the squad should act in his favour. Chris Smalling divides opinion among England fans but I'm personally a fan and think he has all the attributes of a great centre back, pace, strength, ability on the ball and for me he reads a game well.

John Stones may well have an fantastic future ahead of him but I haven't seen enough of him to confirm he's worth a starting place in the side of the £50m Everton are reportedly asking Chelsea to pay for his services. It reminds me a lot of when Rio Ferdinand was at West Ham United ahead of his move to Leeds United and everyone reckoned he would be the next Bobby Moore. As his career developed he became one of those players who made the odd mistake just like anyone else but when he did it was usually a big one. United fans may well disagree with me but I always thought he was over-rated compared to his early career hype but that's a tendency we have with English players – when they're young they're going to be world beaters but then reality kicks in and they're just as good or as bad any other player in the England squad. If you look at the young crop of talent we have coming through for England now though with the right international boss and the right club and club manager we may finally have a great side in three to five years. For now though I'd play Cahill and Smalling and use Dier and Stones as replacements.

The one player some people were surprised was omitted was Phil Jagielka and if we didn't have Dier for a fourth centre back I'd agree but then he's 33 years old now and like Leighton Baines he hasn't had a great season at Everton. Aside from Leicester City, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United it's hard to list anyone who's had a great season due to their teams' indifferent form (and Roy has neglected to include any West Ham players). I think this is the end of Jagielka's England career and he was hardly a stalwart with 39 caps and will hardly be missed. I think we've seen the last of Joleon Lescott too who earned 26 caps and is heading for the Championship with Aston Villa after being brought in to shore up their defence. One Villa player I do have a lot of time for still is Micah Richards. The former Manchester City defender joined Villa at the wrong time after a failed loan in Italy with Fiorentina and is desperate to rebuild his career. Maybe he's one of those players who is better in my mind than in reality but I think with the right team and run in the side he could be a great player. At 27 years old though he really has to think carefully about his next move or if he stays at Villa then he has to hope that Dr Tony Xia really can deliver on his promise to restore them to former glories.

Whether Phil Jones would have made the squad if fully fit is another question but he appears to be one of those players (like Kieran Dyer and Jermaine Jenas) whose careers are plagued by injuries. It could well hinder his international future as it's hard to develop a defensive partnership for an England team if you're never sure if one of them will be fit at the right time.

There are two centre backs that have received only one cap each in recent years who deserve a mention. The first is Ryan Shawcross who I think is paying the price for being a Stoke City player since he left Manchester United reserves in 2008. For years he has been a great player for the Potters and has been rumoured for moves to Arsenal (among other clubs) in the past but I'd like to see him given a few more chances in the international side. His only cap came against Sweden in November 2012. and another player who earned made his debut in that game and has not played since is Steven Caulker. Since then he's moved from Spurs to first Cardiff City and then Queens Park Rangers with whom he was relegated in 2015. This season he played only eight games at the Loftus Road club before a surprise move to Liverpool on loan. He only played four times for the Reds though and it will be interesting to see where he ends up next season however I always thought he looked like a promising player and at 24 years old he still has time to get back in the limelight.

Finally two uncapped players who've had great seasons but are unlikely to get international recognition. Bournemouth's Steve Cook has been one of the best centre backs this season according to the statisticians and is one of the players most responsible for keeping the south coast side in the Premier League. Scott Dann has played consistently well for Crystal Palace in the two and a half years since his arrival from Blackburn Rovers and again perhaps if he was at a higher profile club he might have been called up before now.

(Player – Club – Age – Caps & Goals - BPL Games & Goals 2015/16 – Overall Games & Goals 2015/16)

Gary Cahill – Chelsea – 30yo – 41/3 – 20/2 – 34/4

Chris Smalling – Manchester United – 26yo – 23/0 – 34/0 – 53/2

John Stones – Everton – 21yo – 8/0 – 33/0 – 41/0 Eric Dier – Tottenham Hotspur – 22yo – 4/1 – 37/3 – 51/4

Phil Jagielka – Everton – 33yo – 39/3 – 21/0 – 29/0

Phil Jones – Manchester United – 24yo – 20/0 – 10/0 – 13/0

Ryan Shawcross – Stoke City – 28yo – 1/0 – 20/0 – 23/0

Joleon Lescott – Aston Villa – 33yo – 26/1 – 27/1 – 28/1

Micah Richards – Aston Villa – 27yo – 13/1 – 19/1 – 23/2

Steven Caulker – Liverpool (loan from QPR) – 24yo – 1/1 – 3/0 – 4/0

Steve Cook – Bournemouth – 25yo – 0/0 – 31/4 – 33/4

Scott Dann – Crystal Palace – 29yo – 0/0 -36/5 – 41/5

Who I'd Take: Gary Cahill, Chris Smalling, John Stones, Eric Dier My Starting Players: Gary Cahill, Chris Smalling

Centre Midfield (holding)

Henderson, Milner, Alli, Wilshere, Delph, Drinkwater

There's a mixture of experience and youth in this group and it's hard to see who Roy will drop for the 23 as this is clearly the over-populated area, especially if you throw Eric Dier into to the mix. James Milner is the second most capped England player in the squad and that counts in his favour but what does he bring to the table that others don't? He's versatile enough to play central, wide or behind the strikers but he doesn't have the pace for the wide game and there are better players for an attacking midfield role. He'd be a good bench player to bring on to calm a game down but not a starter for me.

Jordan Henderson is a starter for me despite being one of those Marmite players that fans either love or hate. He's not exceptional, don't get me wrong, but then again is anyone in this group? Central midfield is one area of the squad where we really need to wait for a few other talents to come through. Henderson has done enough this season for me to warrant a place in the squad and the starting eleven though.

The one shining light of youth and exuberance is of course Dele Alli. The Spurs midfielder has been one of the success stories of the season and I'm sure people would be talking about him more if there weren't such other stand-out performances from Leicester City (as a whole), Jamie Vardy, Riyad Mahrez, N'Golo Kante and Dimitri Payet. This young lad signed from MK Dons for a reported initial fee of £5m with probably little expectation of making the first team so soon given the plethora of good midfielders they have at Spurs yet only missed five league games and scored ten goals (including for me as well as many others the goal of the season). There is I suppose a call to push him in with the attacking midfielders but I haven't seen enough of him to know if that's where he belongs. I think he certainly belongs in the squad and after the season he's had why not start him too.

If this was my squad I'd only be taking three of these players as I think Roy's 26 already lacks width so I'd also have two attacking midfielders, three wide players and four strikers. So far I'm taking Henderson and Alli and leaving Milner I'm afraid. Next I'm eliminating both Jack Wilshere and Fabian Delph as I don't believe either should be in the squad. Wilshere has only played three games this season and there's a big difference between being match fit and in form and we can't even tell if he's in form. A good midfielder but not the game-changing type you'd risk a 'maybe fit' slot for. Then there's Delph who hasn't impressed since his £8m move from Aston Villa and for me needs to improve under Pep Guardiola to be considered at this level.

So that leaves Danny Drinkwater.....maybe. Out of Roy's selection he's the one I'd take but I'm not sure he will. Time will tell. He's had a great season over-shadowed by some of his peers at Leicester. For me it's a difficult choice between him and Mark Noble who continues to be over-looked at this level at West Ham United. Both had good seasons and it's very difficult to judge the Leicester plays on an individual basis because they all worked superbly as a collective. I'd certainly include Noble over Delph, Milner and Wilshere but I think I'll go with Roy and Drinkwater if he can play like he has this season.

There are a few young players to mention for the future of the squad but first a departing player; Michael Carrick. He may not have been a shining star in any of the sides he played in through his career but I feel he's always been a reliable player and were it not for his age I think he'd have been in with a shout for this squad as a final farewell. There are two other players with caps who may or may not feature again for England in future. Jonjo Shelvey comes in the same mould as Jordan Henderson in that people seem to love him or hate him. His career has certainly had peaks and troughs so far as he's moved through Charlton Athletic, Swansea City, Liverpool and now relegation with Newcastle United. Like Micah Richards at Villa, the next twelve months could be crucial to his career. The second is Jack Rodwell, Everton starlet to Manchester City reject to Sunderland obscurity. At one point he was the Eric Dier of the U21 side with the ability to play in defence or midfield but the big money move went (predictably) south all too quickly. Will we ever see him back in an England shirt?

Three young players featured next are ones I feel will be important for England in future years. James Ward-Prowse has had a great season at Southampton and has played for the U21 side seventeen times since August 2013 and has established himself as a crucial player in the Saints midfield. I certainly expect to see him capped before the next World Cup and possibly make the squad. Ryan Mason is another Spurs youngster to have impressed this season but didn't quite do enough to add to the solitary cap he earned against Italy in March 2015.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek is probably being elbowed into my list because I'm a Chelsea fan but I truly believe he could be a great midfielder for club and country in years to come. As with any player though the progression depends on the club manager and Chelsea have a history of managers failing to support emerging young talent over expensive overseas players. You have to wonder how much better off they would have been if Jose Mourinho had kept Kevin de Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and Juan Mata or whether players like Oriol Romeu and Marco Van Ginkel would have developed better staying at the club rather than leaving on loan. At least Ruben has had a good string of games this season and I'd like to see Antonio Conte continue to give him chances next season.

Two players who have had good seasons statistically are Bournemouth's Andy Surman and Swansea City's Jack Cork (another ex-Chelsea player). Surman is a former U21 player and like Steve Cook has been crucial in keeping Bournemouth in the Premier League. Cork has been one of the Swans more consistent players in an inconsistent season for them.

(Player – Club – Age – Caps & Goals - BPL Games & Goals 2015/16 – Overall Games & Goals 2015/16)

Danny Drinkwater – Leicester City – 26yo – 1/0 – 35/2 – 37/2

Fabian Delph – Manchester City – 26yo – 9/0 – 12/2 – 20/2

Jordan Henderson – Liverpool – 25 years old – 23/0 – 16/2 – 25/2

Jack Wilshere – Arsenal – 24yo – 28/2 – 3/0 – 3/0

James Milner – Liverpool – 30yo – 58/1 – 28/5 – 45/7

Dele Alli – Tottenham Hotspur – 20yo – 6/1 - 33/10 – 46/10

Michael Carrick – Manchester United – 34yo – 34/0 – 24/0 – 37/0

Jonjo Shelvey – Newcastle United – 24yo – 6/0 – 9/0 – 9/0

Ryan Mason – Tottenham Hotspur – 24yo – 1/0 – 18/5 – 22/5

James Ward-Prowse – Southampton – 21yo – 0/0 – 33/2 – 39/2

Mark Noble – West Ham United – 29yo – 0/0 – 34/7 – 43/7 Andy Surman – Bournemouth – 29yo – 0/0 – 41/3 – 41/3

Ruben Loftus-Cheek – Chelsea – 20yo – 0/0 – 11/1 – 15/2 Jack Rodwell – Sunderland – 25yo – 3/0 – 22/1 – 24/3

Jack Cork – Swansea City – 26yo – 0/0 – 35/1 – 36/1

Who I'd Take: Dele Alli, Jordan Henderson, Daniel Drinkwater My Starting Players: Dele Alli, Jordan Henderson

Central Midfield (attacking)

Rooney, Lallana, Barkley

Wayne Rooney is the one player everyone has an opinion over. I've probably seen as many people saying leave him out of the squad as I have saying that to do so would be professional suicide. I'm not sure of the proportion split between United and non-United fans but I dare say the proportion of votes to keep him belong to United fans. My personal dilemma though is that I'm not a United fan, I really don't like Wayne Rooney (at all) and yet I still think he needs to be in the England squad. I'd probably make it his last tournament unless he really, really performs but I think he deserves one last chance with no great challengers to his role in attacking midfield just yet. He's certainly not a striker and should not be considered for a wide role but can still do a role between midfield and attack. Having watched him in the F A Cup final though I just want to see more from him. He showed great skill and determination to set up United's equalising goal but for the rest of the match did very little to impress. Every England fan would love to see the Rooney that was full of energy, skill, strength and passion in the early years of his career but as often happens with players who are successful at a young age he's burnt out before his thirtieth birthday. I'm tempted to use Michael Owen and Fernando Torres as similar examples. I know a good number of people who wouldn't take Rooney so I hope he has a good enough tournament to support not only Hodgson including him but myself also.

Despite Everton's poor season I'd also take Ross Barkley as I see more in him than Adam Lallana although the latter can play wide at a push. Barkley is the sort of player to bring on in the second half with his energy and creativity to push for a goal when needed. Lallana had that great season at Southampton before his £25m move to Liverpool but since then I haven't seen anything (although Liverpool fans can probably argue a better case for his inclusion as they've seen him play far more than I have).

The one other player worth a mention is Jesse Lingard who I already has in this list before he scored the F A Cup winning goal. He's been in and out of the United side this season and if he'd been more 'in' then perhaps he would have been joining Marcus Rashford in the pre-tournament squad. I certainly think we'll see more of him in the next couple of seasons though.

(Player – Club – Age – Caps & Goals - BPL Games & Goals 2015/16 – Overall Games & Goals 2015/16)

Wayne Rooney – Manchester United – 30yo – 109/51 – 28/8 - 38/15

Adam Lallana – Liverpool – 28yo – 21/0 – 29/4 – 47/7

Ross Barkley – Everton – 22yo – 21/2 – 38/8 – 48/12

Jesse Lingard – Manchester United – 23yo – 0/0 – 14/2 – 16/3

Who I'd Take: Wayne Rooney, Ross Barkley My Starting Player: Wayne Rooney

Wide Players

Sterling, Townsend

As I said earlier my main concern with the England squad is that it lacks width. I only consider Raheem Sterling and Andros Townsend to be wide midfielders although admittedly Jamie Vardy, Adam Lallana and James Milner can play there. I'd personally take three wide players but neither Sterling or Townsend would be in my selection. I did nearly include Sterling and if I was to do so it would be at the expense of a fourth striker but he's had an unconvincing debut season at the Etihad. I like Townsend but struggle to justify selecting anyone from a relegated team when he rarely played at Spurs for the half season before his move.

Instead I've gone with two uncapped players with form (although I would have capped them before now) and long time favourite who I feel has the versatility to play wide or up front just like Vardy can.

Although my other two selections may be contentious I really can't understand why West Ham's Michael Antonio is not in the squad let alone uncapped as yet. There's a great argument for the inclusion of a number of the Hammers' players (and it seems strange that there are none) but for me Antonio's season outweighs that of Noble, Cresswell or Andy Carroll. With a name like Antonio it's no surprise that people didn't think he was English but you'd expect Roy to know and the right winger (who can also play right back) has had a hell of a good season and Slaven Bilic has shown a lot of faith in him which has certainly been repaid. Along with Payet he is one of the main reasons why West Ham finished seventh in the league. One of my work colleagues referred to him as a beast and I certainly support that assessment.

Everyone has talked about Vardy, Mahrez and Kante at Leicester this season but I feel that Marc Albrighton has been largely overlooked. The former Aston Villa winger has flourished under Claudio Ranieri's leadership and having been capped at U21 level I'd like to see him make the senior side too.

My last wide choice does have one cap earned against Chile in November 2013 and has a name with Spanish heritage – Jay Rodriguez. He's effective wide as well as in a striker role but unfortunately, like Jack Wilshere for example, he has a history of injury and spent sixteen months on the sidelines with an ACL injury. If I didn't take 'J-Rod' I'd take Sterling but for the purpose of this blog I'm plumping for the Saints player.

Theo Walcott was regarded by many as the surprise exclusion by Roy Hodgson but he hasn't done enough to justify his place. It shows that in some respects the England manager has the balls to leave out previously established names but at the same time he could have gone a little further. Ashley Young has also been left out after an average season with United and I'm not convinced he will add to his thirty laps whereas I'm sure we'll see Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain again and he's unlucky to miss out this time through injury. The other capped player to mention who seems to have dropped out of contention is Aaron Lennon. He seemed like a great winger at Spurs, lightning fast although he did often lack a final ball but since his move to Everton on loan followed by a £4.5m transfer he's looked a shadow of his former self and effectively justified Spurs' decision to sell him.

There are three fringe players with two caps between them. Nathan Redmond has been capped by the U21 side 25 times and was one of Norwich's better players this season but with the side dropping down to the Championship he needs to look for a Premier League club next season to continue his development. Scott Sinclair has played for England at every level apart from senior level but like Rodwell his move to Manchester City was not the success he hoped it would be and then the move to Aston Villa was worked out even worse. I think he's a talented player but will struggle to get back in the international reckoning ranks. My last eligible winger is Wilfried Zaha but the F A Cup final reminded me why he hasn't added to the two caps he has and why Manchester United sold him back to Crystal Palace. He's a typical winger who flatters to deceive with one good performance every five games which shows what he can do but doesn't do often enough. He played well in patches of the final but too often gave the ball away in possession or failed to press the back line when his team didn't have the ball.

The last winger I'll mention is probably contentious as we all hate him now but Adam Johnson is the perfect story of what could have been if you don't screw up your life royally. Had he thought with his brain rather than his groin then he could have played himself into contention for the squad. If Townsend can make it with relegated Newcastle then Johnson could have done it with Sunderland. Instead he threw it all away with moronic stupidity and he should be a cautionary tale for young, upcoming footballers everywhere.

(Player – Club – Age – Caps & Goals - BPL Games & Goals 2015/16 – Overall Games & Goals 2015/16)

Raheem Sterling – Manchester City – 21yo – 20/2 – 28/6 – 42/11

Andros Townsend – Newcastle United – 24yo – 10/3 – 17/4 – 20/4

Theo Walcott – Arsenal – 27yo – 43/8 – 28/5 – 41/9

Ashley Young – Manchester United – 30yo – 30/7 – 18/1 – 25/1

Michail Antonio – West Ham United – 26yo – 0/0 – 26/8 – 31/9

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – Arsenal – 22yo – 24/5 – 22/1 – 33/2

Jay Rodriguez – Southampton – 26yo – 1/0 – 8/0 – 12/3

Marc Albrighton – Leicester City – 26yo – 0/0 – 38/2 – 42/2

Aaron Lennon – Everton – 29yo – 21/0 – 25/5 – 31/6

Nathan Redmond – Norwich City – 22yo – 0/0 – 34/6 – 36/6

Wilfried Zaha – Crystal Palace – 23yo – 2/0 – 34/2 – 43/5

Scott Sinclair – Aston Villa – 27yo – 0/0 – 21/2 – 39/9

Adam Johnson – HM Prison Moorland – 28yo – 12/2 – 19/2 – 20/2

Who I'd Take: Michail Antonio, Jay Rodriguez, Marc Albrighton My Starting Players: Michail Antonio

Strikers

Sturridge, Kane, Vardy, Rashford

Last but not least we have the strikers, the area that used to include Wayne Rooney but no longer. I think Roy is taking three strikers to the Euros and I (somewhat reluctantly) agree with all three although I would also take a fourth. I think the England boss has included Rashford for the experience and to reward him for an excellent season but I'd be surprised if he wasn't one of the three players dropped before the final submission.

My reluctance is over Jamie Vardy and unless this is the first time you've seen me mention the Leicester striker then you'll know I'm not his biggest fan. The old saying is that form is temporary and class is permanent and in my opinion if Vardy was class then he wouldn't suddenly be emerging as this great striker at the age of 29. That being said I've waited all season to be proven right and for his form to drop and although it eased off it's not as though the goals have dried up. That's why I've got to reluctantly include him. If I'm wrong and he's the real deal then we'll certainly need him. If I'm right and he's just in the form of his life then hopefully it can continue through the summer. Part of my dislike for him is that I'm just sick of people going on about him like he's the next Gary Lineker and the two most irritating quotes of the year come from him: 'chat shit get banged' and 'Jamie Vardy's having a party'. Take Vardy out of the Leicester side and I'd have been a lot more supportive of their title win as I have time for every other player in their squad. So Vardy's going, I've said my piece, let's leave it at that.

The other two are Harry Kane and Daniel Sturridge and at least for me we're talking real class players (okay that's another dig at Vardy but I couldn't resist). Everybody wondered after Kane's debut season in 2014/15 whether he would be a one season wonder but he's followed it up with another great year finishing as the league's top scorer with 25 goals. He's a striker with everything – great with his feet, an eye for goal, good with his head, tall, strong and doesn't have the sort of 'loose' temperament which someone like Diego Costa has. For me he's the first choice striker all day long. I'm a big fan of Daniel Sturridge too though (another former Chelsea player we could do with right now) and am glad he has returned from injury in time to prove he's back to his best before the tournament. Liverpool may have lost the Europa League Final but his goal was fantastic. If I was playing 4-4-2 I'd have Kane and Sturridge as the partnership and use Vardy as an impact sub but I think Roy will go 4-3-3 so I've tried to shape my XI the same way with Kane as the spearhead and Sturridge and Vardy on either flank.

As I said though, I would take four strikers and my fourth choice is Jermain Defoe. He may be 33 years old and I may have written off similar aged or even younger players than him but I think he's another great sub option, he bags of experience with England and despite Sunderland's poor season he still scored fifteen league goals. If not Defoe then a good shout came from my friend who said Andy Carroll. He would give us something different and add an aerial threat that defences find hard to cope with especially if we end up chasing a goal in the second half of a match. The downside is that he hasn't been prolific in West Ham's prosperous season and therefore may not have done enough to warrant inclusion.

I've left Marcus Rashford out of my four as I think it's just too early for him but who else either came close or missed a chance to push for a place? Who knows what sort of season a fully fit Danny Ings could have had under Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool but I think he would have excelled. I certainly think he would have been in the running for the Euros and the same can be said of Arsenal's Danny Welbeck. The former Manchester United striker is behind the previously mentioned players on my list but has delivered for England more than most when called upon.

The list of strikers who could have pushed for a chance certainly includes Saido Berahino although I've still not seen why he is rated so highly. Apparently Stoke City still want to spend good money on his and if he hadn't alienated himself from the West Brom team and fans you wonder if a successful season could have put him on the plane. Charlie Austin got into the England squad at the end of last season after scoring 18 league goals for QPR in their relegation season although he didn't get to earn a cap. I think if he'd moved to the Premier League in the summer things might have been different and I'm amazed that it didn't happen. His January move to Southampton came too late to impress and he found it hard to break into an already established line up. He still has time on his side for future years.

The same cannot be said though for my next four names who have all played for England in recent years and now find themselves on the outside looking in. Rickie Lamber scored three goals in eleven caps but has only scored once for West Bromwich Albion all season after leaving Liverpool. At 35 years old Peter Crouch is a year older than Lambert and scored twice in the cup for Stoke but failed to find the net in the league this season. David Nugent scored in his only cap way back in 2007 against Andorra and despite leaving Leicester City last summer he still won a league title – the Championship with Middlesbrough. He scored 8 goals in 36 games which is hardly prolific for the second tier. One last mention for a formerly-capped player is Jay Bothroyd. Many people forget he was capped back in 2010 against France and it shows how slim the pickings were back then. He now plays for Jubilo Iwata in the Japanese J-League after helping them gain promotion last season.

(Player – Club – Age – Caps & Goals - BPL Games & Goals 2015/16 – Overall Games & Goals 2015/16)

Daniel Sturridge – Liverpool – 26yo – 17/5 – 14/8 – 25/13

Harry Kane – Tottenham Hotspur – 22yo – 10/4 – 36/25 – 48/28

Jamie Vardy – Leicester City – 29yo – 6/2 – 36/24 – 38/24

Marcus Rashford – Manchester United – 18yo – 0/0 – 11/5 – 17/8

Danny Ings – Liverpool – 23yo – 1/0 – 6/2 – 9/3

Danny Welbeck – Arsenal – 25yo – 35/14 – 11/4 – 15/5

Jermain Defoe – Sunderland – 33yo – 55/19 – 32/15 – 33/18

Rickie Lambert – West Bromwich Albion – 34yo – 11/3 – 19/1 – 24/1

Andy Carroll – West Ham United – 27yo – 9/2 – 24/9 – 29/9

Charlie Austin – Southampton – 26yo – 5/1 - 21/11 – 21/11

Saido Berahino – West Bromwich Albion – 22yo – 0/0 – 10/2 – 10/2

David Nugent – Middlesbrough – 31yo – 1/1 – 36/8 – 38/8

Jay Bothroyd – Jubilo Iwata – 34yo – 1/0 – 37//26 – 37/26

Peter Crouch – Stoke City – 35yo – 42/22 – 11/0 – 18/2

Who I'd Take: Daniel Sturridge, Harry Kane, Jamie Vardy, Jermain Defoe My Starting Players: Daniel Sturridge, Harry Kane

My England 23

Goalkeepers: Joe Hart, Fraser Forster, Ben Foster Defenders: Nathaniel Clyne, Kyle Walker, Ryan Bertrand, Kieran Gibbs, Gary Cahill, Chris Smalling, John Stones, Eric Dier Midfielders: Dele Alli, Jordan Henderson, Daniel Drinkwater, Wayne Rooney, Ross Barkley, Michail Antonio, Jay Rodriguez, Marc Albrighton

Attackers: Sturridge, Harry Kane, Jamie Vardy, Jermain Defoe

My England XI

Joe Hart

Nathaniel Clyne, Gary Cahill, Chris Smalling, Ryan Bertrand

Dele Alli, Jordan Henderson

Wayne Rooney

Michail Antonio, Harry Kane, Daniel Sturridge

The Last Question

The final point to cover then is which three players come out of the 26 to make the squad of 23. Out of the players he picked already I would leave out Rashford, Delph and Wilshere. I think he will agree with two but take Delph and leave Drinkwater. Let's wait and see though.