Dan Childs: Southgate right to ditch experienced trio

England provisional Euro 2024 squad reaction

There are plenty of unresolved issues for England head coach Gareth Southgate, who must whittle down a 33-player provisional Euro 2024 squad to 26 names by June 8, but he has taken some bold decisions by overlooking a group of high-profile experienced players and deserves credit for doing so.

The writing was probably on the wall for Raheem Sterling, who won his last cap at the 2022 World Cup, but Marcus Rashford and Jordan Henderson have been regulars in the England set-up and their omission came as a surprise to many.

Rashford's career has been one of ups and downs and he had some high points at the 2022 World Cup, where he frequently influenced games off the bench and was the Three Lions' joint-top scorer alongside Bukayo Saka.

He could have been a potential impact substitute this summer but has had a poor campaign, scoring just seven Premier League goals, and his inclusion could not be justified given the fierce competition for forward berths.

The inclusion of Ollie Watkins was a no-brainer after his outstanding exploits for Aston Villa.

He looks a certainty for the final 26 and could even enter the conversation for a starting berth, perhaps on the left hand side should Phil Foden be granted his wish to play more centrally.

Jarrod Bowen and Ivan Toney are much more on the fringes and if it boils down to a choice between the two for a potential third choice central striker, I would opt for Toney, who has the confidence and bravado to perform on the big stage and the pace and physicality to ruffle the feathers of most defenders.

Henderson's omission also looks the right call even though England are short of experience in the  centre of the park.

Adam Wharton has come on leaps and bounds having started the season with Blackburn and he has been one of the main drivers of Crystal Palace's late-season surge. He deserves to make the final cut at the expense of fellow uncapped midfielder Curtis Jones, who failed to start any of Liverpool's final four games of the season.

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Euro 2024 England squad reaction: Rashford and Henderson big names to miss out 

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