Trent Alexander-Arnold one of four England stars snubbed by Southgate

Former Liverpool right-back Glen Johnson talks about Trent Alexander-Arnold and his form for Liverpool and England.

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Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold has been left out of the England squad to take on Germany tonight with Gareth Southgate deciding not to include the defender in his 23-man group. Jarrod Bowen, Fiyako Tomori and James Ward-Prowse are the other names missing while Manchester City star Jack Grealish is suspended following his booking in the 1-0 defeat to Italy. 

Tonight’s Nations League will be the final time England are in action before the World Cup gets underway in November and the nation is looking to arrest an alarming slump in form, winning none of the last five matches. Those who missed out on the squad tonight will be left fretting over their place at the tournament with no opportunities left to make a direct impression on Southgate. 

Alexander-Arnold has come under intense pressure this season with many onlookers believing his performances have fallen well below his usual standards. He has been especially poor defensively, a quantity that Southgate particularly values given his status as a more defensively minded coach. He has made just one appearance for England in 2022 and this will not change tonight. 

Tomori, Ward Prowse and Bowen also were all missing from the 23 leaving them sweating over their place in Qatar. The decision to leave out the AC Milan defender was particularly notable with many supporters and pundits considering him to be one of the best centre-backs at Southgate’s disposal. 

The England manager has recently hinted that Reece James, Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier are all ahead of Alexander-Arnold in the race to be in England’s squad come November. The Chelsea and Manchester City men are near certainties given their strong defensive record and ability to play on the right-hand side of a back three while the Newcastle vice-captain has long been a favourite of the 52-year-old. 

“You can have a style of play and a way of playing, and a balance to the team, that… at Liverpool they find a way of playing that brings the best out of his attributes and that’s what we’re all trying to do with every team,” Southgate explained when asked about Alexander-Arnold’s ability.

“You’re trying to build a team that accentuates the positives, and within the group protects yourselves against how the opponents might come from you. He does have a fantastic range of passing, we’re blessed with different profiles of player in that position, if we play with wing-backs, Trippier and Reece James are also exceptional with the ball, in different ways, and we’re always having to look at the full package with everything.

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“If you assess the players on all of their attributes, they’ve all been to Champions League finals, some of them have been to latter stages of major tournaments with us, Trent’s won the league, Trippier’s won the Spanish league, Walker’s won the English league. There are so many good attributes about them, it’s a really difficult position to make decisions on, but we have to go with the ones we believe, and ultimately I’ll be judged on the outcome.”

It remains to be seen whether or not the Liverpool defender will make the World Cup squad in November – but it has to be said his prospect are looking increasingly bleak especially if his form does not improve. 

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