With the 2022 Qatar World Cup beginning in December this year, Gareth Southgate will be closely monitoring players who could make his squad.
After a successful tenure so far, reaching the World Cup semi-finals in 2018 and losing the Euro 2020 final to Italy on penalties last summer, Southgate will be hoping to go one better this time around.
Although England has a settled core of players, multiple positions in the squad remain. Here’s five that TIBS News believes has the best chance.
Max Kilman
Kilman has already made 25 senior appearances at international level, having previously played for England’s Futsal team at the age of 18.
The 24-year-old has had a meteoric rise in recent years, signing for Wolves in 2018 from non-league side Maidenhead United.
He made his debut under previous Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santos in May 2019, impressing the board who gave him a contract extension till 2025.
Since Bruno Lage took over in the summer, Kilman has played a pivotal role and has helped guide his side to eighth position, as they chase an outside chance of European qualification.
Wolves have only scored 17 goals this season, only ahead of Burnley and Norwich City, putting huge scrutiny on their defence.
Kilman, alongside Connor Coady, Romain Siass and Jose Sa, has played every minute of their league campaign so far. Wolves have the second-best defensive record, sitting behind table toppers Manchester City, conceding just 15 goals in 20 games and keeping eight clean sheets.
The back three formation of Wolves, which Southgate has regularly implemented for England, enables Kilman to drive out of defence and build attacking opportunities for his team.
We have previously seen John Stones and Harry Maguire benefit from this style of play and Kilman is more than comfortable enough to play this way.
Although club captain Coady has been included regularly in England squads, if Wolves continue their impressive defensive record, Kilman has a chance to be included soon.
Ivan Toney
Brentford’s talisman has found it difficult to mirror his goalscoring form from the Championship to the Premier League but his all-round game has enabled him to still be an impactful striker.
Scoring four goals and two assists in 20 games, Toney hasn’t found the goal as much as he’d like, however his physical presence and craftiness has made him a handful for Premier League defenders.
The 25-year-old will be confident in his own capabilities to find the net in the second half of the season as newcomers Brentford continue to impress in 14th.
Numerous reports have linked the striker to a move away from London to Merseyside, with Everton and Liverpool rumoured to be interested.
Although Harry Kane has cemented the No 9 shirt for England for the foreseeable future, Southgate will still be looking for forward options and with Toney’s hold-up play suiting the likes of Raheem Sterling, Bukayo Saka and Marcus Rashford, if the striker adds more goals to his game he will be on Southgate’s radar.
Oliver Skipp
Since Tottenham Hotspur appointed Antonio Conte early November, they have gone eight league games unbeaten and are beginning to become serious top four contenders.
Skipp, who impressed under previous manager Nuno, has continued his form and is now a vital player to the Italian’s famous 3-5-2 system.
The 21-year-old has formed a robust partnership with Pierre-Emile Hojberg, as both players dictate Spurs’ tempo both on and off the ball.
Skipp, a regular in England’s U21 side, has matured since being sent out on loan to Norwich City last season, where he helped the Canaries gain promotion to the Premier League.
His aggressive nature off the ball and composure when on the ball will impress Southgate, suiting the England manager’s style of play.
Skipp has started six out of the eight league games under Conte and, with a world class manager trusting such a young player already, it is clear that the youngster is highly valued by the club.
Southgate used his two holding midfielders, Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips, constantly and impressively during the Euros but Phillips has struggled for fitness lately so the England manager may be looking for cover in these positions.
Jarrod Bowen
Bowen is perhaps the most in-form player in this list, having started all 22 league games for West Ham this season, scoring six and making an impressive seven assists, behind Mo Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
The Irons sit in fourth, yet again chasing European qualification. Since signing for £20million from Hull City, having dominated in the Championship, Bowen has become a valuable asset to David Moyes.
His directedness and ability to dribble past full backs have become a common occurrence these past two seasons but the 25-year-old has begun adding goals and assists to his name.
In fact, this improvement led to many being surprised that Southgate did not include him in his previous squad late last year.
The winger’s ever-improving form has caught the eye of Liverpool who, seemingly every transfer window, have been linked heavily to the Englishman and may be a target for them this summer. Bowen will continue his form long into the new year and is the most likely, based on form, to get a call up in Southgate’s next squad.
Tariq Lamptey
Yes, England are inundated with right backs and could fill a whole starting XI, who could almost qualify for the World Cup themselves, but Lamptey is one of the more realistic picks.
Last season he dominated games for Brighton before his hamstring injury in December 2020, putting him out till October 2021.
Having been on course for a call up before the injury, the 21-year-old is now fully fit and beginning to reach his previous levels.
Gaining full fitness in November, Graham Potter is now regularly starting the youngster, seeing his side pick up eight points from their last four games as the Seagulls have climbed to ninth.
Although Lamptey may be behind in the pecking order for England, with the likes of Alexander-Arnold and Reece James in the mix, Southgate may be looking for a more youthful approach with his back-ups Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier both being over 30-years-old.
