Czech Republic v England: Mason Mount deserving of a first start ahead of Ross Barkley
Tournament qualifiers hold a strange significance for England.
On the one hand they are fully-fledged competitive internationals which need to be won in order to reach World Cups and European Championships.
But on the other hand, England haven’t lost one in 43 instances – an unbeaten streak which dates back almost exactly 10 years, since a 1-0 defeat to Ukraine on 10 October 2009.
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With qualification therefore almost always assured from the outset the approach the Three Lions should adopt is up for debate.
Should they play the strongest side possible in order to build confidence and team chemistry for the upcoming tournaments, or use the weaker opponents as an opportunity to blood youngsters?
Chances for youngsters
As is often the case, England are currently top of their Euro 2020 qualifying group with a perfect record and a goal difference of +15 after just four games. They face the Czech Republic in Prague tomorrow evening, where a win would confirm their place in next summer’s finals, before travelling to Sofia to play Bulgaria on Monday.
To his credit, Gareth Southgate’s reign as manager has been defined by his willingness to give chances to younger, less established talents and his current crop reflects that. The average age of the squad is 24, with Jordan Henderson, Kieran Trippier and Danny Rose the oldest players at 29.
Southgate has already given game time to the likes of Marcus Rashford (21), Jadon Sancho (19) and Declan Rice (20), so with England’s presence at Euro 2020 all but confirmed, now is the time to usher in more up-and-coming players.
While Chelsea’s 22-year-old striker Tammy Abraham is fully deserving of a call-up having scored nine goals in 11 appearances this season, his way to a first senior start appears difficult, with captain Harry Kane, Callum Wilson and Rashford vying for a single centre-forward role in Southgate’s favoured 4-3-3 formation. Likewise, newcomer Fikayo Tomori finds himself as the fifth centre-back in the squad.
Mounting a charge
However, one youngster who should be pencilled in for minutes is Mason Mount, who is both in-form and an improvement on the incumbent in his position.
The Chelsea midfielder, who has come off the bench in England’s last two qualifiers, is enjoying a breakthrough season, with four goals and one assist in the Premier League. James Maddison, who has been similarly impressive for Leicester, would be another in the frame had he not been forced to withdraw from the squad by illness.
Mount is fully deserving of a start, and with Dele Alli, Jesse Lingard, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain not in the squad only club colleague Ross Barkley stands in their way.
Barkley has started the last two England games alongside Henderson and Rice in a three-man midfield but, in keeping with his career, the performances have been inconsistent. Mount has been keeping the 25-year-old out of Chelsea’s side of late and that trend should be extended to the national side.
Former Everton man Barkley has fulfilled the role of box-to-box midfielder for Southgate and although he might be more physically suited to the position than Mount, the younger man is capable of stepping in against sides who were beaten 5-0 and 4-0 in the reverse fixtures. The same is true of Maddison.
In his three years in charge Southgate hasn’t shied away from handing out opportunities. The time is right for the next batch to be initiated.
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