Three things
- England fans will never be unanimously impressed with the England squad. Some presumably think players who aren’t English should be included. A handful of others realise there’s a finite number of players to pick from, and that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo aren’t in that pool.
- It’s only a World Cup qualifier. Just one game. There isn’t even a friendly to follow it up. And it’s a qualifier in a group England, I dare say, will comfortably qualify from. It’s a 23-man squad for an eleven-man fixture. A lot of these unwelcome call-ups won’t even play.
- Allardyce wants width. England have noticeably lacked proper wide men in recent years, and Sam Allardyce seems happy to sacrifice the creative Ross Barkley, for the strong and pacey Michail Antonio.
Michail Antonio "overwhelmed and emotional" after England squad announcement
Yeah, a lot of England fans know how you feel, Michail...
The shock inclusion says he “got slightly emotional” after realising a childhood dream by being named in the national team ahead of World Cup qualifying.
John Cross writes:
Antonio, 26, began his career at non-league Tooting and Mitcham and now finds himself as the surprise name in Sam Allardyce’s first England squad for the World Cup qualifier in Slovakia next Sunday, September 4.
“It’s just one of those things that I’ve always dreamt of playing for England as a kid, so now for it to happen after I’ve worked my way from non-league to where I am now, I am just so happy. I don’t even know what to say – words can’t explain how happy I am!
“I just give my all every time I go on the field, so for me to called-up by England, I don’t know what to say! All I can do is go out there on the international stage and show there is a reason why the gaffer has called me up.
“I turned down an approach from Jamaica in March and for this to happen so quickly, I’m buzzing! I just want to keep my feet on the floor. In my first season in the Premier League, even though I had good stats, the England manager would have had to take a risk on me.
“It looks like the gaffer now believes that I’ve done enough to be in there, so hopefully I can prove him right.”
You can read the full story here.
Gary Lineker does a funny
“Definitely Big Sam’s best @England squad so far,” the Match of the Day presenter boldly proclaims.
The joke being that it’s Big Sam’s only England squad so far, and therefore is the best by default.
Leon Knight shares his thoughts
Remember Leon Knight? From Twitter? Also *checks Wikipedia page*... plays football still?
Well he’s had his say.
Really isn’t a whole lot of love for Jordan Henderson and Theo Walcott at the moment is there?
While opinion remains split on Mark Noble...
Roughly one in 20 fans of Premier League clubs will tell you Mark Noble should be in every England squad. And every starting XI. Hell, even give him the captaincy.
Non-West Ham fans though, by and large, remain unconvinced.
He misses out once again.
One seems pretty chuffed with his - and Theo Walcott’s - omission, saying: “Big Sam leaving out Mark Noble absolutely makes up for the fact that Walcott gets a place”.
A Hammers fan has contrasting emotions: “Delighted for @Michailantonio getting in the England squad but can’t believe @Noble16Mark hasn’t made it in! Mr reliable!”
If he’s not getting in under his former manager, it’s probably time to accept it might not happen at all, guys.
We’ve got further reaction to the announcement here
Broadcaster - and Liverpool fan! - Colin Murray, wants Noble in, however:
No room for Barkley?
One of the better English players in the Premier League so far, yet there’s no place for Ross Barkley.
Fans are, unsuprisingly, rather bemused at the decision.
One said: “Antonio, Henderson and Drinkwater all before Barkley in England squad HAHAHAHA...”
Another added: “Can we all just take a moment to collectively wonder why Ross Barkley isn’t in the England squad either? An utterly baffling decision.”
What have we learned?
West Ham winger Michail Antonio is the only uncapped player to make Sam Allardyce’s first England squad. He scored for the Irons in their 3-1 defeat at Manchester City on Sunday with a towering header.
Theo Walcott returns to the set-up after having missed Euro 2016. Arsenal team-mate Jack Wilshere, however, doesn’t make the cut.
Leicester midfielder Danny Drinkwater, who agreed a new five-year contract with the Premier League champions and has been in fine form at the start of the season, is given a chance to impress.
Ross Barkley, despite his decent start to Everton’s campaign, is not included. Mark Noble STILL doesn’t get a call-up.
England squad announced!
Here’s the moment we’ve been waiting for. Michail Antonio gets the nod! And Wayne Rooney is a midfielder?
Goalkeepers: Fraser Forster, Joe Hart, Tom Heaton
Defenders: Gary Cahill, Nathaniel Clyne, Phil Jagielka, Danny Rose, Luke Shaw, Chris Smalling, John Stones, Kyle Walker
Midfielders: Dele Alli, Michail Antonio, Eric Dier, Danny Drinkwater, Jordan Henderson, Adam Lallana, Wayne Rooney, Raheem Sterling, Theo Walcott
Strikers: Harry Kane, Daniel Sturridge, Jamie Vardy
What time is the announcement?
A good question, no doubt. Big Sam is playing his cards close to his chest and has only said that it will be “this evening” but don’t worry, we’ll let you as soon as we do.
He might be calling each player personally or checking on their fitness. John Stones suffered an eye injury and had to be substituted during Manchester City’s 3-1 win over West Ham earlier today.
Jermain Defoe
It would be unfair to call Jermain Defoe a rogue selection if he is picked. He is a proven Premier League goalscorer and the main reason, it could be argued, that Sunderland have avoided relegation for the past two seasons.
Yet Defoe’s age and the fact he’s no longer challenging at the top end of the table have counted against him. Allardyce worked closely with Defoe at Sunderland last term , though, and is no stranger to what he can do inside the box.
Defoe netted for the Black Cats at the weekend; will he get the nod for England?
Sterling stakes his case
Unlike team-mate Joe Hart, Raheem Sterling appears to feature prominently in Pep Guardiola’s plans at Manchester City.
The winger was criticised last season for not living up to the £49million fee that City paid Liverpool to sign him, but under the Spaniard, he doesn’t seem to be struggling at all.
Sterling scored twice in City’s 3-1 victory over West Ham earlier this afternoon, a result which keeps them top of the Premier League table.
Why England stars might struggle
Little more than nine weeks ago, Joe Hart tried to put the critics in their place.
“Nobody will want to play us in the last 16,” he said after England’s goalless draw with Slovakia which meant they’d failed to top their group at Euro 2016.
“I haven’t had anything to do in the whole tournament, to be honest,” he then added, walking blindly into Schadenfreude Alley.
If someone had told Hart when he woke up the next day that, in two months’ time, Pep Guardiola would tell him to find another club and England’s new manager Sam Allardyce would warn him that unless he followed that advice he wouldn’t play for his country, he’d probably have thought he’d had a car crash, woken up after a Head And Shoulders transplant, and that his brain wasn’t functioning properly.
Because, like most senior England internationals, he hasn’t needed to worry about his club place.
With the arrival of the so-called Super Coaches comes a stark reality for players whose reputations have been over-inflated by an England shirt.
These bosses don’t let hype blur their vision.
Brian Reade discusses how this might affect some of English football’s biggest names - click here
Opponent watch: Slovakia
England’s first World Cup qualifying opponents are Slovakia, who they drew 0-0 with in St-Etienne this summer.
On that occasion Roy Hodgson rested several players and came a cropper, but you can expect Mr Allardyce to throw his best XI at their hosts.
If you want to relive the crushing pain of that night in France, here’s your link.
Sunday is the day
Allardyce takes charge of his first England game next Sunday in Trvana, Slovakia.
Originally the Football Association had hooked him up with a money-spinning Wembley friendly against Croatia but that fixture was binned by Big Sam in favour of more training time at St George’s Park.
He obviously wants to get to know his players and wants them to get to know his ways and plans.
It means he’s thrown in at the deep end, however, with a World Cup qualifier.
Hello and welcome
Hello there and welcome to the best Sunday night of your life.
Yes, this evening we will see Sam Allardyce - who is, now, apparently the England manager - announce his first squad.
That’s right. The destiny of this country’s football now lies in the hands of the former Sunderland gaffer and this evening’s announcement will be the first proper indication of what that will look like.
From a personnel standpoint, as well as a structural one, there were plenty of changes called for in the wake of the humiliation that was England’s Euro 2016 campaign.
But what will we actually see?
Well this is the only place to find out - so stay tuned for live updates, reaction and lots more....