- Gareth Southgate has discussed reasoning behind England’s Euro 2024 squad
- Jack Grealish and James Maddison were both left out ahead of the tournament
- Click here to follow Mail Sport’s Euro 2024 WhatsApp Channel for all the latest breaking news and updates from Germany
Gareth Southgate has described the previous 24 hours as one of the toughest of his England reign as he ruthlessly cut seven players from his Euro 2024 plans.
Jack Grealish, Harry Maguire and James Maddison were the three headline casualties from Southgate’s original 33-man squad, while Curtis Jones, Jarrad Branthwaite, James Trafford and Jarrell Quansah were also informed that they would not be going to Germany this summer.
‘It is one of the most difficult parts of the job,’ admitted Southgate. ‘We’ve tried to do it as respectfully and with as much human side as possible but I also know that for the players who aren’t coming with us, that’s a devastating blow.
‘They’ve all been amazing with how they’ve dealt with it but I know it is a difficult day for them and their team-mates because they are really excited about going — and they should, they’ve done unbelievably well in a lot of cases to push some experienced players out of the squad.
‘But we’ve got to balance that excitement and a bit of remorse for a difficult day.’
Specifically on Grealish and Maddison’s omissions, Southgate said: ‘They’ve been tough calls we’ve gone over and over and over as a group of staff to try to be fair, to get the right rationale.
‘And we back our decisions but recognise we could have gone a different route. Both of the boys are big characters, fabulous team-mates, great boys to work with. So yes, sad to deliver that news to them.’
Maguire, as revealed by Mail Sport on Thursday afternoon, was struggling to provide his fitness after suffering a calf injury, that has included at least two set-backs.
‘Harry has made some progress but that’s been complicated,’ added Southgate.
‘We definitely wouldn’t have had him in the group stages and there were too many hurdles to get through without really being clear of where we might get to.
‘Given we haven’t got a clean bill of health across the rest of the backline as well, then we need cover, players who are fit and ready to go from the start. Another difficult call.
‘You know how I feel about Harry Maguire and what he’s done for England, what he’s done for me as a manager.
‘That’s a slightly different case to the other two but no easier because of that.’