Whether you agree with it or not, Chelsea players Mason Mount and Raheem Sterling face an anxious wait now to see if they get the nod to start the next England game.
Gareth Southgate’s men play in their last 16 match against Senegal on Sunday, and it’s going to be a very tough opponent to beat. Southgate will have some big decisions to make with his team selections.
Both Mount and Sterling were rested (or dropped, however you like to see it) for England’s win against Wales in midweek, and both Phil Foden and Marcus Rashford played well coming in.
It would really be quite harsh to drop either of them. And also, Bukayo Saka had been playing well and will also be hoping for a start. Jack Grealish has been good off the bench and would be feeling he’s earned a start as well, and there is also James Maddison and Conor Gallagher waiting in the wings for an opportunity.
Gareth Southgate has surprisingly stuck with the back four, and I think he will continue with this again on Sunday. This is what I think he will go for:
(4-3-3): Pickford; Walker, Stones, Maguire, Shaw; Rice, Bellingham, Mount; Sterling, Kane, Saka.
I think Southgate will bring Saka, Sterling, and Mount back after resting them, even though that might be harsh on Rashford and Foden. Although this is what I predict, I’m not fully sure that Southgate will bring the Chelsea lads back in. And you know what? It would be a fully justified decision if he didn’t.
For me, I’d go for something like this:
(4-2-3-1): Pickford; Walker, Stones, Maguire, Shaw; Rice, Bellingham; Grealish, Foden, Saka; Kane.
Sorry Mason and Raheem, but I just think that we need our best attacking talents on the pitch if we are to open up Senegal. Jack Grealish, I rate highly and needs to be playing, so does Phil Foden. Saka, Bellingham, and Rice in there for some fight as well. But for me, this is the sort of exciting attacking line up we could put out.
I’d obviously love to see Mount and Sterling start the game, as they are Chelsea players and its always Chelsea over everything. But I think they might be sweating ahead of the game with the amount of competition they have.