The European version of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) is about 2 months away and I really cannot wait for one of the biggest football tournaments to kick-off. The 2015/16 season has been a disappointment for me despite it not being over yet. My beloved Man Utd have been faltering on all angles and sincerely I think it is high time the United board moved on from Louis Van Gaal. Yes I was happy with his arrival but now I am not anymore. I have been heart broken too many times this season and I cannot wait for it to be over. As if that is not enough, the other European teams I follow are doing terribly too except for Juventus that looks braced for another Serie A title. Real Madrid cannot win La Liga and surely will not win the Champions League, Aston Villa are destined for the Championship, Newcastle might follow in the Villa track (though my gut feeling says Newcastle will escape relegation) and Aberdeen looked poised for Scottish Premier League crown before faltering along the line.
Back to the matter at hand, as you all know (if you did not now you would) The Three Lions of England is my “adopted” favourite National Team and this has been since the 2002 World Cup which held in South Korea and Japan. I have never missed any of their games in any tournament since I became a fan, yes I get a lot of heartbreaks but I will still stand by this team. As the Euro 2016 which holds in France between June and July draws near myself and my people from one of the best Chat Group in the world (Naija Pundits) have been speculating what players will make the cut for the various teams we would be supporting when the tourney kicks off including England. So I have decided to share my preferred English 23 to the Euros. Find my list below.
- Joe Hart – Goal Keeper (Manchester City)
- Fraser Forster – Goal Keeper (Southampton)
- John Ruddy- Goal Keeper (Norwich)
- Nathan Clyne – Right Back (Liverpool)
- Chris Smalling – Center Back (Manchester United)
- Gary Cahill – Center Back (Chelsea)
- Danny Rose – Left Back (Tottenham Hotspurs)
- Eric Dier – Center Back/Holding Midfielder/Right Back (Tottenham Hotspurs)
- Ross Barkley – Attacking Midfielder (Everton)
- Jordan Henderson – Central Midfielder (Liverpool)
- Harry Kane – Striker (Tottenham Hotspurs)
- Jamie Vardy – Striker (Leicester City)
- John Stones – Center Back (Everton)
- Phil Jagielka – Center Back (Everton)
- Kyle Walker – Right Full Back (Tottenham Hotspurs)
- Michael Carrick – Central Midfielder (Manchester United)
- Dele Alli – Attacking Midfielder (Tottenham Hotspurs)
- Danny Welbeck – Forward (Arsenal)
- Wayne Rooney – Forward (Manchester United)
- Raheem Sterling- Winger (Manchester City)
- Aaron Cresswell – Left Back (Southampton)
- Danny Drinkwater – Holding Midfielder (Leicester)
- James Milner – Winger/Central Midfielder (Liverpool)
There you have it, the best 23 players in England that would make me proud. It would be nice to have Michael Carrick in the squad because his experience matters a lot and yes Rooney might have been misfiring at the start of the season but he started 2016 in good form though an injury in February has kept him out of the team for a couple of months but his wealth of experience would also go a long way.
No place for Daniel Sturridge in my team, no beef (like he knows me) its just that I could not drop a more experienced Rooney and Welbeck is more of an utility player (that’s how I feel) and we all know Harry Kane and Jamie Vardy are the top scoring English players in the EPL so it was a no-brainer putting them in the squad of 23. I would also loved Ryan Bertrand to go but Aaron Cresswell and Danny Rose are having a brilliant season and being majorly injury free.
Criticize, comment and share, it probably might get to Roy Hodgson (Hehehehehe).
Thanks for your time as always and stay BLESSED. Have a lovely week ahead.
No Theo in your team and Sturridge, Issokay kontinu. Well not that Theo has been any good this season sha. Thought you were a Theo lover. Lol.
Hehehe, I still like Theo. Thanks for reading.
There is always a surprise with an England squad announcement and although it was flagged up the inclusion of Marcus Rashford in Roy Hodgson’s 26-man squad is the biggest, boldest talking point.