Southgate backs push for 26-man squads at Euro 2024 amid injury pile-up

Kyle Walker goes down injured during England’s 1-0 defeat to Brazil. Photograph: Mike Egerton/PA

Gareth Southgate has suggested he would be in favour of 26-man squads at the European Championship in Germany this summer and revealed that the issue is to be debated next month at a Uefa coaches ­meeting, where it will have support.

Southgate’s plans over the past international window were turned upside down by injuries and there is a growing feeling that the physical demands on players mean larger squads will be needed for the ­tournament.

Uefa agreed to increase the numbers from 23 to 26 at Euro 2020, which was affected by the pandemic and played in the summer of 2021. Fifa extended the measure to the winter 2022 World Cup in Qatar but Uefa was expected to revert to 23 this summer.

The managers of the competing Euro 2024 nations meet for a two‑day workshop in Düsseldorf on 8‑9 April and Southgate will have the events of the past week or so in his mind. ­Having picked an initial squad of 25 for the Wembley ­friendlies against Brazil and ­Belgium, the England mana­ger saw Bukayo Saka and then Harry Kane return to their clubs for ­treatment without ­playing. Kyle Walker and Harry ­Maguire were injured against ­Brazil; John Stones against Belgium, while Sam ­Johnstone went down in ­training. Jordan ­Henderson and Cole Palmer had fitness issues and could not play.

“There is one more Uefa ­meeting where there’s been a little bit of talk amongst some of the coaches about possibly increasing that [squad size from 23 to 26],” Southgate said.

He has had to contend with numerous other injury problems, the most ­concerning being Luke Shaw’s hamstring which has made him touch‑and‑go for the finals.

Southgate was asked whether he would support the push for 26-man squads. “Well, given where we are now!” he replied, with a smile.

“We’ve got to make the best decisions [regarding selection] with what we know and some of those currently are going to be medical decisions. We’ve been able to get those right in the previous [two] tournaments. We’ve been able to give people time [to recover, having named them in the squad]. But with 23 that’s definitely more difficult.”

Southgate will name his provisional squad – also known as the training squad – on 21 May, which is two days after the Premier League season ends. But he could have ­players in the Europa League final on 22 May, FA Cup final on 25 May, Europa Conference League final on 29 May and Champions League final on 1 June.

England play warmup matches against Bosnia and Herzegovina at St James’ Park on 3 June and ­Iceland at Wembley on 7 June. Southgate must submit his final squad to Uefa that night at midnight CET, just an hour after the Iceland game has finished.

Southgate said it would be “really hard to be really definitive” about the identity of the players he would like in his final group when he names his enlarged training squad. “It’s going to depend on where some of the injuries are at and also how many players are in the European finals,” he said. “My pre­ference is always that players have some clarity on what the role is when they come in. I’ll probably try to at least manage expectations in that period.”

Southgate watched the 18‑year‑old midfield prodigy Kobbie Mainoo press his claim with an outstanding performance on his full debut in the 2-2 draw against Belgium, having come on as a substitute for his debut in the 1-0 defeat by Brazil.

Mainoo caught the eye alongside Declan Rice in Southgate’s 4-2-3-1 formation. But as the manager talked up the teenager’s unique profile, he sought to manage expectations pointing out that the midfield with Mainoo was less solid defensively and more vulnerable to transitions.

“There was that fearlessness [from Mainoo] to come in and the technical ability to receive, when pressed, to find a pass, to manipulate the ball in tight areas,” Southgate said. “We are obviously a little bit more open with him. But it gives us a profile of player we haven’t got. That’s hugely exciting.”

One player who will not go to the European 2024 finals is Ben White, who continues to make himself unavailable after going home early from the Qatar World Cup. Rice had said he thought his Arsenal teammate had spoken to Southgate after the squad announcement for Brazil and Belgium to discuss the situation. But Southgate said it was not the case.

“It’s really for Ben now,” ­Southgate said. “As I’ve said, the door is open, [although] that’s clearly difficult ahead of the Euros, where he’s missed all the qualifying campaign and you’ve got players that have played all the way through.”