Gareth Southgate admits Man United star a “long shot” to make final England squad
Gareth Southgate has named his provisional 33-man England squad for Euro 2024 ahead of this summer’s tournament in Germany and it included Man United’s Luke Shaw, but the Three Lions boss has admitted that the defender is a “long shot” to make the final squad.
The left-back’s season has been severely disrupted by muscle injuries, with the 28-year-old missing the majority of the campaign and only featuring in 12 games for Man United this term.
Shaw hasn’t played a game since February and is expected to miss this weekend’s FA Cup final, but Southgate has included the full-back in his provisional squad as left-back is a problem area for England at present.
The Three Lions coach will use the friendlies against Bosnia and Iceland at the start of June to assess the Man United star’s fitness ahead of cutting his squad to 26 players to take to Euro 2024 -which needs to be done by June 8.
Southgate has included Joe Gomez, Jarrad Branthwaite and Ezri Konsa in his initial group, who could play at left-back, while Kieran Trippier has also occupied that role for England in the past.
There is also the possibility of the England boss playing a back three, but all this will become clearer at the start of June.
Luke Shaw is a “long shot” to make the final England squad for Euro 2024
Speaking about Shaw at his press conference on Tuesday, Southgate stated via Fabrizio Romano: “He is up against it. He missed a lot of football.”
“The fact he’s been our first choice in that position, we’re probably giving him a bit longer. I’ve spoken with him but I have to say he’s a long shot to make the final squad.”
Shaw’s fitness issues make things tricky for Southgate heading to Germany as the Three Lions boss will need to be a little creative to fill the position.
The 53-year-old has not stepped out of his comfort zone very often since becoming England coach, but this summer may see him do new things with his Three Lions squad.
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