Gareth Southgate names his provisional England squad for this summer’s European Championship, and there will be no place for former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson.
Despite England being short of central midfield options, Henderson has paid the price for a disjointed campaign that saw him cut short a spell in Saudi Arabia before joining Ajax in January.
Southgate is expected to name a squad of around 30 to 32 players at 2pm, a group which will be cut to 26 in a few week’s time.
Henderson’s omission is likely to give England’s midfield options a youthful feel, with Adam Wharton, Curtis Jones and Kobbie Mainoo expected to be part of the initial squad, competing with Conor Gallagher for a starting spot alongside Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham.
As well as Henderson, Raheem Sterling will miss out, with Southgate appearing to have moved on from the Chelsea winger. Competition for places in the attacking positions is fierce, with the likes of Anthony Gordon, Cole Palmer, Eberechi Eze and Anthony Gordon emerging to challenge more established names. Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka and Phil Foden are certainties to be selected, but Jack Grealish and Marcus Rashford might be sweating on their place.
If Southgate has an embarrassment of attacking riches, the same cannot be said at the back. As our chief football writer Sam Wallace wrote in his column on Sunday, three of Southgate’s first-choice back four have struggled for form, fitness or playing time this season. John Stones finished the season on Man City’s bench, Harry Maguire is in a race to return from a muscular problem while Luke Shaw suffered a setback on his return from injury.
Southgate also has to contend with the fact that around 10 England players are expected to be involved in the FA Cup and Champions League finals.
We’ll bring you the squad and latest updates shortly.