Englishmen, the time has come.
Go forth, buy those £3.99 England flags for the top of your car from your local petrol station. Stock up on the red and white face paint. Familiarise yourself with your nearest fountain so that you can drunkenly dance in it as you celebrate James Tarkowski’s 67th minute World Cup final winner against the Germans. Just – whatever you do – try not to get too carried away…
Yes, Gareth Southgate has named his first England squad of 2018, a World Cup year. Now that we have a clearer picture of who might be pulling on a Three Lions’ shirt in Russia (assuming World War 3 hasn’t kicked off in the mean time), we can finally start getting excited about our boys’ inevitable march to glory. Or an earlier-than-anticipated last 16 departure to a Robert Lewandowski-inspired Poland.
England face friendly matches against the Netherlands and Italy before the month is out, and had today revealed a 27-man squad of players to choose from.
One of the main headlines is that Tarkowski – the previously uncapped Burnley defender – has been named in the squad along with goalkeeping teammate, Nick Pope. Bournemouth’s Lewis Cook and Swansea’s Alfie Mawson have also been given call ups.
Harry Kane’s ankle injury means he’ll be sitting this international break out. There is a return, however, for Arsenal’s Jack Wilshere and Manchester United’s Ashley Young.
Here is the squad in full:
Here's our 2️⃣7️⃣-man squad for the #ThreeLions' games against the Netherlands and Italy.
Join us at @wembleystadium – tickets on sale now: https://t.co/hXIfok2kev pic.twitter.com/ZzqpepmfqA
— England (@England) March 15, 2018
