England are currently the 3/1 favourites to win Euro 2024 this summer with bet365 Sport. Considering this is a team that has not won an international trophy of note since the 1966 World Cup, that is a staggering fact.
There are two reasons for this. Gareth Southgate’s team reached the final of the Euro 2020 tournament, losing on penalties to Italy at Wembley. Many fans feel that this squad is much improved on the one that participated in the last European Championships.
The other reason is that the competition for England is not as strong as it has been. Belgium, Germany, Spain, Italy and the Netherlands are all not as strong as teams that they have had in the past. England have also been drawn into what looks on paper to be a favourable group. Alongside Serbia, Denmark and Slovenia.
In fact, the main rivals, FIFA World Cup Finalists France, were somewhat fortunate to beat a below-par England in the World Cup Quarterfinals back in 2022. A rare Harry Kane missed penalty handing France the win when extra time or penalties could have decided the outcome.
So many England fans are getting their money on Southgate’s Three Lions to end their drought of trophies with a win in Germany this summer.
And with FIFA now announcing that teams can select a 26-man squad, up from the original 23-man squad, it means places in that final 26 are very much up for grabs.
So with that in mind, we are going to go through how Southgate will decide how his squad is comprised (how many goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders and attackers he will name in that 26-man squad) and then give you a list of players who could be in consideration for each position.
We’ll then name out pick for the 26-men who we believe should be on the plane to Germany this summer.
England Squad Composition
Most of Gareth Southgate’s recent 23-man England squads have comprised of the following: –
- 3 Goalkeepers
- 8 or 9 Defenders
- 7 or 8 Midfielders
- 4 or 5 Attackers
It therefore makes sense that if Southgate is allowed to bring along three extra players, then he would be likely to add one to each main position. Especially considering he is likely to stick to his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation.
So that would be: –
- 3 Goalkeepers
- 9 or 10 Defenders
- 8, 9 or 10 Midfielders
- 3, 4 or 5 Attackers
It should be noted here that there is a lot of flexibility over the terms midfielders and attackers here. Some players listed as attackers, can also play as a winger or midfielder (such as Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Bukayo Saka, James Maddison, Cole Palmer, Anthony Gordon etc).
Now let’s take a look at the players in contention in each of those four positions.
Players marked with an asterisk * are those that would likely be in the probable list, but due to injury are either possible or unlikely players to consider for the squad.
Goalkeepers
We’re going to assume that England will take three goalkeepers to the tournament. Only Jordan Pickford is a sure-fire certainty to be on the plane. His back ups could be any two from the possible, or even the unlikely list below. Nick Pope would have been a probable, but injury has ruined the vast part of this season making his participation doubtful.
Probable
- Jordan Pickford (Everton)
Possible
- James Trafford (Burnley)
- Aaron Ramsdale (Arsenal)
- Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace)
- Nick Pope (Newcastle United)*
- Sam Johnstone (Crystal Palace)
Unlikely
- Jason Steele (Brighton)
- Jack Butland (Rangers)
Defenders
Given the fact that Southgate has packed his squad with defenders for recent tournaments, I am expecting at least nine, if not ten defenders to be selected in his final squad. We have listed the players likely under consideration below.
Probable
- Kieran Trippier (Newcastle United)
- Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool)
- Kyle Walker (Manchester City)
- Ben Chilwell (Chelsea)
- Harry Maguire (Manchester United)
- John Stones (Manchester City)
- Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace)
Possible
- Joe Gomez (Liverpool)
- Luke Shaw (Manchester United)*
- Lewis Dunk (Brighton)
- Fikayo Tomori (Milan)
- Erik Dier (Bayern Munich)
- Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton)
- Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa)
- Levi Colwill (Chelsea)
Unlikely
- Reece James (Chelsea)*
- Dan Burn (Newcastle United)
- Tino Livramento (Newcastle United)
- James Tarkowski (Everton)
- Ben White (Arsenal)
- Rico Lewis (Manchester City)
- Matt Doughty (Luton Town)
- Tyrick Mitchell (Crystal Palace)
Midfielders
There’s a lot of flexibility with midfielders and attackers, but what we do know is that Southgate is going to want at least three defensive midfielders for the squad, as he likes to play with at least two in most games. That could stretch to at least four with an extra place available, which does put a premium on attacking midfield places.
Probable
- Declan Rice (Arsenal)
- Jordan Henderson (Ajax)
- Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid)
- Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United)
- Phil Foden (Manchester City)
- Jack Grealish (Manchester City)
Possible
- Conor Gallagher (Chelsea)
- Kalvin Phillips (West Ham United)
- Cole Palmer (Chelsea)
- Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United)
- James Ward-Prowse (West Ham United)
- James Maddison (Tottenham Hotspurs)
- Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace)
Unlikely
- Curtis Jones (Liverpool)
- Harvey Elliott (Liverpool)
- Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Milan)
- Dwight McNeil (Everton)
Attackers
England don’t have a huge choice of central striking options here, so I expect Southgate to name three, in his squad, given that we only usually play with one central striker. However, he may pick a few players who can operate in wide positions and also centrally if required.
Probable
- Harry Kane (Bayern Munich)
- Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)
- Marcus Rashford (Manchester United)
- Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
Possible
- Ivan Toney (Brentford)
- Dominic Solanke (Bournemouth)
- Callum Wilson (Newcastle United)
- Raheem Sterling (Chelsea)
- Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United)
- Harvey Barnes (Newcastle United)
Unlikely
- Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton)
- Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund)
- Danny Ings (West Ham)
Southgate’s Final 26-Man England Squad for Euro 2024?
So who do we think will make Southgate’s final squad of 26 for the summer? Here’s my predictions for his 26-man squad, plus his first choice team based on that squad.
Goalkeepers (3) – Jordan Pickford (Everton), Sam Johnstone (Crystal Palace), James Trafford (Burnley)
Defenders (10) – Kyle Walker (Man City), Kieran Trippier (Newcastle), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Luke Shaw (Man Utd), Harry Maguire (Man Utd), John Stones (Man City), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Joe Gomez (Liverpool)
Midfielders (8) – Declan Rice (Arsenal), Jordan Henderson (Ajax), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Kobbie Mainoo (Man Utd), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Kalvin Phillips (West Ham), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United)
Attackers – (5) – Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Marcus Rashford (Man Utd), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa), Cole Palmer (Chelsea)
Southgate’s Probable First Choice England XI (4-2-3-1)
- GK – Jordan Pickford
- DR – Kyle Walker
- DL – Ben Chilwell
- DC – Harry Maguire
- DC – John Stones
- DMC – Declan Rice
- DMC – Kobbie Mainoo
- AMC – Jude Bellingham
- AC – Harry Kane
- AML – Phil Foden
- AMR – Bukayo Saka
My Final 26-Man England Squad for Euro 2024
My final 26-man squad for England would be different to Southgate’s selections in a number of areas.
Firstly, my choice would be to play a more conventional 4-3-3 formation and that would be reflected in the choices I make for the squad.
Goalkeepers (3) – Jordan Pickford (Everton), Sam Johnstone (Crystal Palace), James Trafford (Burnley)
Defenders (9) – Kyle Walker (Man City), Kieran Trippier (Newcastle), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Tino Livramento (Newcastle United), Fikayo Tomori (Milan), John Stones (Man City), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton), James Tarkowski (Everton)
Midfielders (9) – Declan Rice (Arsenal), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Kobbie Mainoo (Man Utd), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), James Maddison (Tottenham), Conor Gallagher (Chelsea), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United)
Attackers – (5) – Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Jarrod Bowen (West Ham), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa), Cole Palmer (Chelsea)
My First Choice England XI (4-3-3)
- GK – Jordan Pickford
- DR – Kieran Trippier
- DL – Tino Livramento
- DC – John Stones
- DC – Jarrad Branthwaite
- DMC – Declan Rice
- AMR – Bukayo Saka
- MC – Trent Alexander-Arnold
- AC – Harry Kane
- AMC – Jude Bellingham
- AML – Phil Foden
Which England team do you think would stand a better chance at the Euros in 2024?