Jordan Henderson’s Selection in Jeopardy: Will He Make the Cut for the European Championship?

‘Henderson more controversial than ever in England: selection seriously at risk’

Tuesday, March 12, 2024 at 9:59 AM

Gareth Southgate has some tough choices to make ahead of the upcoming European Championship. The coach of the English national team will announce his selection for the friendly international matches against Brazil and Belgium on Thursday. Hot topic? Jordan Henderson.

The Ajax midfielder has already played eighty times for the national team, but seems more controversial than ever. Richard Jolly outlines in The Independent that Henderson must seriously fear for his place in the selection.

More: Unai Emery highlights one player after the first match: ‘He certainly helped Ajax’

Two players breathing down his neck are Kalvin Phillips (West Ham United) and Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United). The latter had never been in the starting line-up for an official match at the time of England’s last international matches.

A disadvantage for Henderson is that the European Championship selection consists of 23 players. During the 2020 European Championship and the 2022 World Cup, national coaches were allowed to select 26 players. It makes Southgate less able to experiment.

The advantage is that two possible alternatives are injured: Trent Alexander-Arnold and teammate Curtis Jones, both from Liverpool. James Ward-Prowse, 29, is believed to be ineligible.

Four names that are undisputed in the English midfield are James Maddison (Tottenham Hotspur), Conor Gallagher (Chelsea), Declan Rice (Arsenal) and Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid).

England will play Brazil at Wembley on March 23 and take on the Belgians three days later. Shortly before the European Championship, two final tests await Bosnia and Herzegovina (June 3) and Iceland (June 7).

For the English, the European Championship starts on June 16 against Serbia. The Three Lions are further divided into a group with Denmark and Slovenia.

2024-03-12 08:59:00
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