“Southgate is right to snub Raheem Sterling, Jack Grealish may be in the squad but may not be in the England starting-Liverpool legend claims Southgate right to snub Raheem Sterling
Liverpool legend claims Southgate was correct to pass on Raheem Sterling.
Liverpool legend claims Southgate was correct to pass on Raheem Sterling.
Former Liverpool player John Barnes has backed Gareth Southgate’s decision to leave Raheem Sterling out of his recent England lineups.
Sterling has not played for England since the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, and has been ignored by Southgate since then.
The 28-year-old, on the other hand, has been in brilliant form for Chelsea since the start of the 2023-24 season, scoring five goals and providing two assists in that time.
Sterling’s most recent goal came in Chelsea’s 4-4 draw with Manchester City on Sunday, when he put the Blues ahead in the first half after a thundering header from Thiago Silva cancelled out Erling Haaland’s penalty shot.
The winger was outstanding throughout the game, as he has been for most of the season, but Southgate has decided not to include the former Manchester City star in his England team for the forthcoming internationals against Malta and North Macedonia.
Southgate has been chastised for the decision, but in an interview with bonuscodebets.co.uk, Barnes backed the England manager, claiming that Sterling’s omission was not a huge thing.
“Raheem has played well in the last two or three games for Chelsea, and Chelsea haven’t been doing well up until recently,” he explained.
“People are looking at the last two or three games and saying he should be called up, but with the amount of talent available to Gareth Southgate, it’s a difficult situation.”
“I’ll always have Raheem in the England squad, but I don’t think it’s a problem that he’s not there.” Raheem might deserve to be in the squad based on his recent form, but the squad was chosen before the City game, so he will be back in the squad at some stage.”
“Fans will always have an opinion on who should and shouldn’t be in the squad,” Barnes continued. Gareth’s words and actions are respected and trusted by me. He is clear about how he wants his team to play.
“He might believe that what Jack Grealish and Marcus Rashford have to offer differs from what Raheem has to offer.” Jack hasn’t played every game, which is similar to Harry Maguire at [Manchester] United.
“Jack may be in the squad but may not be in the England starting 11, so he’s a bench option.” However, if Raheem is in the team, he cannot be on the bench. You’d want to have him on your team.”
