The only thing I can think of is that they’re good leaders in the squad. But like you say, it’s not like we’re going into a tournament here, it’s the qualifiers where we should be picking those in form and up and coming and let the next bunch emerge as leaders heading into those Euros.
I don’t really understand your complaint.
You want young up and coming in form players selected? Well we’ve got Dunk, Colwill and Tomori all selected at CB, all hoping to partner Stones at the next tournament.
You want young up and coming and inform? The midfield will be Rice, Bellingham and Maddison or Foden. All excellent young and in form players.
Eze, Nketiah, Gallagher…
11 of the squad have 10 caps or fewer.
13 of the squad is 25 or younger.
So for you to argue that Southgate isn’t picking young and in form players is just bollocks isn’t it, it’s got no basis in fact.
Adding more untested young players isn’t helping anyone, it just means you don’t get a proper look at the 10 you’ve selected already.
I think if you’re honest with yourself what you’re upset about is that 2 players you just don’t like who aren’t in form got picked out of squad of 26.
And by the way, given Phillips and Maguire are both, in form, good assets for England to have, it makes sense that the England manager try and do what he can to get them back in form, including select them for England when you can - and in light of about half a dozen clear cut selections like Stones, Shaw, James, Pope who’d bring experience all getting ruled out through injury and no one he’s overlooked really staking a claim to be in the squad - he can do that.
It’s only because a certain section of England fans delight in complaining non stop about anything and everything that happens around the national team that this is even a topic of conversation. Any neutral would look at the squad and say he’s picked a young and exciting squad of in form players and a couple of veterans to make up for injured players and that’s it.
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