Which England players could benefit if Euro 2024 squad sizes are increased?
England manager Gareth Southgate’s Euro 2024 selection headaches could soon ease a little as UEFA considers whether to return to 26-man squads.
Teams have been back to preparing for 23-strong selections this summer after being allowed expanded groups to help cope with the knock-on impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
But a return to 26 is understood to have been backed by the majority of coaches at a Euro 2024 workshop on Monday, with UEFA saying it will make a final decision in the coming weeks.
Previous expanded selections allowed Southgate to take a calculated gamble on the fitness of Harry Maguire and Jordan Henderson at Euro 2020 as the pair recovered from injury.
The same went for Kyle Walker and Kalvin Phillips at the 2022 World Cup as they worked their way back to fitness and, here, the PA news agency has looked some of the potential beneficiaries if it returns to 26 this time.
Luke Shaw
A key figure in England’s last two tournaments, the Euro 2020 final goalscorer has endured a difficult, injury-impacted campaign. The 28-year-old has only managed 15 appearances for Manchester United this term and has not featured for the national team since last June. Shaw is expected to return for United from his latest setback next month and feature before the end of the season. Southgate would surely include someone he calls “one of the best left-backs in world football” if the squad is enlarged.
Reece James
Right-back is nowhere near as much of a pressing issue as left-back given England’s options, but a selection of 26 would offer James a glimmer of hope. The Chelsea captain has only managed nine appearances this term and is at risk of missing his second successive international tournament, having been ruled out of the World Cup in Qatar with a knee injury. This time James is dealing with a hamstring issue and the Football Association has been in close contact with Chelsea throughout the 24-year-old’s rehabilitation.
Jack Grealish/Marcus Rashford
Southgate warned at March’s squad unveiling that Rashford and Grealish had a battle on their hands for a place at the Euros. That fight increased as Anthony Gordon and Jarrod Bowen impressed, plus Cole Palmer has kicked on again with Chelsea after overcoming a knock during the camp. Grealish has since started Manchester City’s last two matches, with Pep Guardiola saying he had a “feeling that he’s back”. Rashford is getting minutes but remains short of last season’s form. Despite the competition, the established duo surely both get into an expanded squad.
Mason Mount
The 25-year-old is a favourite of Southgate but was still a Chelsea player when he last represented England. In fact, injuries have prevented Mount from adding to his 36 caps since coming off the bench 16 months ago in England’s World Cup quarter-final loss to France. Now a Manchester United player, the midfielder is looking to end a frustrating first season at Old Trafford on a high having returned from his latest injury issue. Last month Southgate said Mount will know he is an “outside bet” but an image of him posing for photos in the latest England kit set tongues wagging.
Ollie Watkins/Ivan Toney
England captain Harry Kane is sure to be the main man this summer, fitness permitting, but the back-up striker slot is up for grabs. Dominic Calvert-Lewin filled that role at the last Euros and then Callum Wilson did at the World Cup, with it a straight shootout between Aston Villa frontman Watkins and Brentford’s Toney this time. Southgate acknowledged the difficulty of selecting three out-and-out strikers in a 23-man squad, but an increased squad may tempt him to add another specialist.
Coventry City’s extraordinary rise under Mark Robins
FotMob - April 9, 2024, 11:12 AM
Coventry City are a club that simply refused to die. Under Mark Robins, the manager has overseen an extraordinary ascent, from the depths of League Two to the play-offs in the Championship, and an FA Cup semi-final, dealing with an extraordinary amount of off-field problems along the way.
By Dharnish Iqbal
In the last 11 years, Coventry have been forced to play their football outside of their home city for two separate periods of time.
And this story begins with the Sky Blues being relegated to League One in 2012.
On the brink of liquidation, the club were forced to share their ground with Northampton Town for a season. A dispute with stadium owners ACL (Arena Coventry Limited) over Coventry’s access to matchday revenue ultimately led to fans going to a different home stadium to see their team play.
ACL were happy to lower the rent Coventry had to pay in the circumstances, but didn’t want to release matchday revenue to the club who argued they needed those funds to operate.
In 2016-17 the club were relegated to League Two, but everything changed with the appointment of Robins as they won the EFL Trophy in the same year they were relegated.
This proved to be the turning point as in the following season they gained promotion back to League One via the playoffs, before securing promotion to the Championship two seasons later.
As has been the norm for this remarkable club, even when the sun shone there was darkness around the corner.
A return back to their own Ricoh Arena lasted until 2019 when, for two more years, they were forced to once again move their home games – this time to St Andrew’s in Birmingham, as Rugby Union club Wasps, who in the interim period had taken on control of the stadium from ACL, then collapsed into administration themselves.
33 miles away from their home, attendance numbers dwindled. In March 2021, Coventry agreed to a ten-year deal to return to their arena and their city.
There were to be more twists in the tale, as consortium Frasers Group, owned by former Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley bought the stadium from Wasps, issuing an eviction notice to the club informing them a new license must be agreed upon before Coventry could play at the stadium.
The club claimed before Ashley’s ownership there was an existing agreement that things would stay the same for City to play at what is now known as the Coventry Building Society Arena.
Finally, Coventry and Frasers Group agreed on a five-year deal in April 2023 for the club to play at the stadium.
The battle for Coventry’s home was finally over, as a 12-year tug of war for where the team would play their football affected fans and revenue.
It makes for an astonishing reading of events. Two changes in stadium, two promotions, two relegations, countless fan protests and flirtations with administration.
All overseen by the calm hand of Robins, the manager famous for once saving Sir Alex Ferguson’s job when he himself, was a fast paced striker.
Finances in the lower divisions of the English league system often mean that clubs are regularly in the unfortunate situation of being on the brink of administration, making the fact that Robins has rebuilt Coventry from the fourth tier one of English football’s greatest achievements in recent years.
Robins regularly had to sell his best players early in his tenure, whilst the budget was tight, but he simply got on with it, having broken the £1m mark when purchasing a player only once since 2008.
This summer was no different. After losing the 2022/23 play-off final to Luton Town, the club sold key players Viktor Gyökeres and Gustavo Hamer, to Sporting, and Sheffield United respectively.
For other clubs, this would be a huge setback. For Coventry, it is simply a bump in the road.
Robins as always, has rebuilt. A strike partnership has formed with Ellis Simms and Haji Wright both hitting red hot form at the business end of the season. Simms has 13 league goals to his name (18 in all comps) while Haji Wright has 15 in the Championship (17 all comps).
Whilst there is a clear battle for the two automatic promotion spots in the Championship, between Leeds, Ipswich Town and Leicester City, the sides below them in the play-off places will be sweating as seventh placed Coventry have won four of their last five games and may be peaking at just the right time.
The Sky Blues took some time to adjust to the departures of Hamer and Gyokeres, winning only three of their first sixteen games this season.
However, they’ve reaped the benefits of having a manager who has been with them through thick and thin, entrusted with turning the club around in the toughest of times.
It’s a relationship that goes far beyond club and manager, as Robins has had a huge hand in reviving a city’s football club from the brink.
With the business end of the season approaching, Coventry are in a good position for another attempt at reaching the play-offs and a glamorous, well-deserved FA Cup semi-final with Manchester United is also on the horizon.
Coventry City are a club that has thrived in disrepute. They’ve been through it all and rose above it against immeasurable odds.
For the Championship teams still to face them – starting with play-off rivals Southampton tonight, and Manchester United, it will be a dangerous time to play a club that has hauled itself off the canvas so frequently.
(Images from IMAGO)
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Champions League
Real Madrid vs Man City: The results of their last 10 meetings
Real Madrid and Manchester City face off in the 2023/24 Champions League quarter-finals
Two clubs have faced off in three consecutive campaigns
The pair's first meeting took place in 2012
By James Cormack
Apr 9, 2024
Real Madrid and Manchester City have played out many a classic in recent times
Real Madrid and Manchester City have played out many a classic in recent times / Laurence Griffiths/GettyImages
For much of their existence, Real Madrid gave little consideration to the sky blue outfit from Manchester.
The behemoth resided in the red half of the city, and some Madridistas might've queried whether Manchester actually boasted two footballing institutions.
Since 2012, though, an almighty shift in the balance of power has seen Manchester City slowly rise through not only the English hierarchy, but Europe's as well. Real Madrid have gotten to know this modern supergiant all too well, with the arrival of a familiar foe in Pep Guardiola only adding to their newfound celebrity.
Having met for the very first time in a competitive fixture 12 years ago, the two clubs have gone to face off on ten occasions. The majority have been memorable, and here's a reminder of those duels ahead of Tuesday night's Champions League quarter-final first leg.
Man City 4-0 Real Madrid - 17 May 2023
Manchester City v Real Madrid - UEFA Champions League
City battered Madrid on their way to the treble / Anadolu/GettyImages
Having previously succumbed to Madrid's mystique during the Champions League's latter stages, this was Manchester City's time.
Guardiola's men doubtlessly benefitted from hosting the second leg having drawn the opening fixture in Madrid 1-1. They produced their most impressive performance of their eventual treble-winning campaign, and one of their most dominant displays of the Guardiola era.
The Sky Blues were utterly relentless, totally suffocating and ageing but wily Los Blancos side for the duration. Bernardo Silva's first-half brace set City on their way before Manuel Akanji and Julian Alvarez completed the emphatic rout in the closing stages. The hosts may well have hit double figures if it wasn't for the brilliance of Thibaut Courtois.
Real Madrid 3-1 Man City - 4 May 2022
Rodrygo Goes
Rodrygo stunned the Cityzens in 2022 / Quality Sport Images/GettyImages
Despite the implausibility, there was a sense of destiny surrounding this Real Madrid side.
Having edged incredible ties against Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea, Carlo Ancelotti's men stared down the barrel of a semi-final exit after Riyad Mahrez handed City a second-half lead on the night to extend their aggregate advantage.
The Spaniards had struggled for inspiration with usual miracle worker Karim Benzema enduring a quiet night. Thus, an alternate hero had to emerge, with young Rodrygo coming to the fore. After the Brazilian scored his first in the last minute of the 90, it was only a matter of when Madrid would score their second. Rodrygo netted again barely a minute later.
From there, Madrid's progression into the final was an inevitability. City, who had one-and-a-half feet in Paris, were crushed and a lazy Ruben Dias challenge on Benzema handed the hosts a penalty. The French superstar converted in the fifth minute of extra time to send Madrid through in remarkable fashion.
Man City 4-3 Real Madrid - 26 April 2022
Nacho Fernandez, Riyad Mahrez, Thibaut Courtois
City edged a belting contest on home soil / Soccrates Images/GettyImages
The aforementioned bonkers finale was set up by events in Manchester. The semi-final first leg was an absolute barnstormer.
City were rampant and it looked as if they'd blow past the travelling side. However, despite the Cityzens taking 2-0, 3-1, and 4-2 leads, Madrid kept biting back to ensure they remained in the tie.
Benzema and Vinicius were in devastatingly efficient form as they each got on the scoresheet. The former's panenka penalty with eight minutes remaining meant Madrid's deficit was crucially just one heading into the return leg.
Real Madrid 1-2 Man City - 26 February 2020
Real Madrid v Manchester City: UEFA Champions League
Kevin De Bruyne inspired City to their first win at the Bernabeu / Anadolu/GettyImages
2019/20 was far from a vintage season for Guardiola's City. They relinquished their Premier League crown to Jurgen Klopp's imperious Liverpool, and they'd later fall in horribly disappointing circumstances in Europe.
However, this victory at the Bernabeu felt significant. Pep's City had finally beaten a member of the continent's elite.
Guardiola's ploy of alternating false nines eventually worked a treat as De Bruyne, one of those forward options, scored City's second in a late come-from-behind triumph. Isco had handed Madrid a 1-0 second half lead before Gabriel Jesus restored parity. De Bruyne's 83rd-minute penalty confirmed City's first-ever victory over the Spanish club.
Real Madrid 3-2 Man City - 18 September 2012
Cristiano Ronaldo, Matija Nastasic
Cristiano Ronaldo scored a last-gasp winner in the first meeting between the two clubs / Jasper Juinen/GettyImages
Jose Mourinho's record-breaking La Liga winners from the season prior fought tooth and nail with the upstart Cityzens in a tie which certainly set the tone for their thrilling contemporary rivalry.
A pulsating contest was defined by its final act as Madrid rallied late on to avoid an upset defeat on home soil.
Joe Hart's heroics kept the visitors in the contest as they took two leads through Edin Dzeko and Aleksandar Kolarov. Benzema, seemingly a perpetual thorn in the Sky Blues, made a mockery of Matija Nastasic as he levelled the scores in the final few minutes before Cristiano Ronaldo bagged a dramatic winner having cut inside from the left.
Real Madrid vs Man City - Last 10 results
Result
Date
Competition
Man City 4-0 Real Madrid
17 May 2023
Champions League semi-final second leg
Real Madrid 1-1 Man City
9 May 2023
Champions League semi-final first leg
Real Madrid 3-1 Man City
4 May 2022
Champions League semi-final second leg
Man City 4-3 Real Madrid
26 April 2022
Champions League semi-final first leg
Man City 2-1 Real Madrid
7 August 2020
Champions League round of 16 second leg
Real Madrid 1-2 Man City
26 February 2020
Champions League round of 16 first leg
Real Madrid 1-0 Man City
4 May 2016
Champions League semi-final second leg
Man City 0-0 Real Madrid
26 April 2016
Champions League semi-final first leg
Man City 1-1 Real Madrid
21 November 2012
Champions League group stage
Real Madrid 3-2 Man City
18 September 2012
Champions League group stage
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