Southgate names England squad for September Internationals

Thursday 31 August 2023 by Jonathan Victoria  News

Gareth Southgate has announced his 26-man squad for the upcoming September International fixtures.

The squad sees the return of some familiar faces - obviously, captain Harry Kane is still there, as are Bukayo Saka, Marcus Rashford and Jude Bellingham.

There are some questionable choices in there that have left some fans unhappy, to say the least.

The inclusions of Harry Maguire and Kalvin Phillips are the two that most are confused about, while Jordan Henderson’s place is also a contentious point.

Your #ThreeLions squad for September camp! 🦁

— England (@England) August 31, 2023

One absence, in particular, is getting quite a bit of attention, as the decision to drop Raheem Sterling despite his brace on the weekend and overall good form to start the season has fans baffled as to why he's being left at home.

Call-ups for Levi Colwill from Chelsea, Eddie Nketiah from Arsenal and Eberechi Eze from Crystal Palace are being praised, with Colwill and Nketiah looking to earn their first caps for their nation.

Very interestingly, Trent Alexander-Arnold being listed as a midfielder. Seems as though Southgate sees something that Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp doesn’t (at least he doesn’t seem to want to…)

England will be playing two fixtures in September; one will be a Euro 2024 qualifier against Ukraine in Poland, with the other being the 150th Anniversary Heritage match against Scotland at Hampden Park in Glasgow.

The Ukraine game will be taking place on Saturday 9th September, with the Scotland game on Tuesday 12th September.