Gareth Southgate announces his 26-man squad for the EURO

Too bad only 11 players are eligible for the starting line-up.

That's the first thought that comes to our minds seeing the English squad for the EURO 2020 that was announced on Tuesday afternoon. Gareth Southgate relies on mostly young yet proven stars like Mount, Rashford, Saka and Sancho.

The Three Lions seem stunningly versatile in the offence, with a whole bunch of top players that are expected to go all the way to the end. It's been 55 years since their last major trophy, the 1966 FIFA World Cup, and this team promises that more than a half-century-long drought is about to be over.

Just check out these names. Top-class, indeed. The only major name left out of the list is Jesse Lingard, Manchester United winger on loan at West Ham, who had a wonderful season with the Hammers, but a sensational

Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Manchester United), Sam Johnstone (West Brom), Jordan Pickford (Everton).

Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Conor Coady (Wolves), 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), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Mason Mount (Chelsea), Kalvin Phillips (Leeds), Declan Rice (West Ham).

Forwards: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton), Phil Foden (Man City), Jack Grealish (Aston Villa), Harry Kane (Tottenham), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund), Raheem Sterling (Man City).

The seven players to miss out on the final 26-man squad are James Ward-Prowse, Ollie Watkins, Jesse Lingard, Aaron Ramsdale, Ben White, Ben Godfrey and Mason Greenwood.

Asked about his chosen squad, Southgate said:

"The most complex part this time has been those injuries, whether we should take the chance on people," Southgate said.

"In Jordan Henderson and Harry Maguire we’ve got a couple of players who are not where they’d be ideally in terms of their physical preparation, but we think the experience they have and the fact we think we can get them to a point where they can have an involvement in the tournament, it’s worth taking them. Especially as we’ve got an extended squad of 26.

"We’re not taking any tourists here. We’ve got a squad, all of whom are ready to play and contribute.

"That’s really important because over the next nine matches we hope to be involved in, we’re going to need everybody," concluded Southgate.

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