You can’t have many complaints with these
Many people took issue with Gareth Southgate’s England squad selection. Danny Welbeck’s inclusion and Jack Wilshere’s exclusion for instance, caused a lot of uproar. However, nobody can have any complaints about the squad number allocation.
The numbers to be worn on the back on the players’ shirts were announced today, and thankfully there are no faux pas.
We are the #ThreeLions. pic.twitter.com/dHpDVBLNtg
— England (@England) June 4, 2018
Some fans who actually care about this stuff may have been concerned that Eric Dier, predominantly a defensive midfielder, was wearing number 8 in the friendlies, but rest assured he has been given the number 4, with Jordan Henderson, his more creative midfield partner taking the number 8 shirt.
Ashley Young, Marcus Rashford and Dele Alli have all been given the same numbers that they wear for their clubs, while the three goalkeepers have been given 1, 13 and 23 respectively.
With no natural left winger in the team, and our 3-5-2 system, it makes a lot of sense to give number 11 to Jamie Vardy and number 10 to Raheem Sterling, who will start just behind the captain Harry Kane, who has of course been given the number 9.
Even if we go out in the group stage, we can be proud of ourselves for getting this decision absolutely right.
