England national team prospects at the upcoming World Cup

With all the football leagues in England having come to a close, attention switches to the England national team as it tries to win its first World Cup since 1966. Gareth Southgate, the England manager recently released his 23 man squad for the World Cup which had some few surprises. Looking at the squad released by Southgate, let’s assess England’s chances of winning the World Cup. You can also predict how far England will go in the World Cup by visiting world cup 2018 betting.

Goalkeepers (Jack Butland (Stoke), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Nick Pope (Burnley)
It’s doesn’t instil you with much confidence if two of your goalkeepers in the final World Cup squad featured for struggling teams with one of those being relegated but this is the situation that England finds itself in. Jack Butland who is likely to be the first choice goalkeeper played for Stoke City which was relegated. To a larger extent, Butland played well at Stoke this season though he was left exposed by his defence on a number of occasions. However, going to a big tournament like the World Cup, you want winners in your squad and among all three of England’s goalkeepers, there isn’t anyone who has played for a winning team i.e. team challenging for top honours.

Defence (Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Fabian Delph (Manchester City), Phil Jones (Manchester United), Harry Maguire (Leicester), Danny Rose (Tottenham Hotspur), John Stones (Manchester City), Kieran Trippier (Tottenham Hotspur), Kyle Walker (Manchester City), Ashley Young (Manchester United)

The bulk of England’s World Cup squad consists of defenders. However, though many, not all of them are top quality players deserving of a World Cup place. In central defence, Phil Jones has not had a particularly good season, Gary Cahill does bring loads of experience but spent the better part of the season with Chelsea on the bench, Harry Maguire has played for a Leicester City side that has not set the world alight while John Stones has rarely featured for Manchester City. Only in the fullback positions can England boast of top quality players in Kyle Walker and Ashley Young.
Midfield (Dele Alli (Tottenham Hotspur), Eric Dier (Tottenham Hotspur), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Jesse Lingard (Manchester United), Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Chelsea)

In Eric Dier and Jordan Henderson, England does have good quality defensive midfielders. In addition to breaking up play, Dier is quite good at picking out players with diagonal balls while Henderson is full of energy. It is the attacking midfield players that England can come short. Jesse Lingard can blow hot or cold. The same can be said of Dele Alli and Ruben Loftus Cheek.

Forwards Harry Kane (Tottenham), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Raheem Sterling (Manchester City), Jamie Vardy (Leicester), Danny Welbeck (Arsenal)

The one area that England does have world class player(s) is in attack. Harry Kane is no doubt a top player who has performed at the highest stage for some years now with Tottenham Hotspurs and given the chances, he will definitely bury them. Raheem Sterling has had a good season with Premier League title winners Manchester City. The other three have been pretty decent with Jamie Vardy delivering the goals for Leicester City, Marcus Rashford performing whenever given the chance and Danny Welbeck as always using his power and at times pace to trouble defences.