5 Young Players Who Are The Future Of England
England surprised everyone with their performance at the 2018 World Cup: inexperienced manager Gareth Southgate somehow took his team to the semi-finals, where they were comfortably beaten by Croatia.
Too long disappointing their fans with poor showings at major tournaments, it re-instilled a sense of pride in the nation. Optimism, therefore, is high as Southgate readies his side for the future. England's squad at the World Cup was a relatively youthful one and many of those players should be ready and available for the next outing.
Southgate, too, has named several uncapped players in his most recent squad, for games against Croatia and Spain. This list looks at 5 young English talents who should lead England into the next World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
#1 Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool)
In Liverpool's stunning start to the season, Alexander-Arnold hasn't looked out of place one bit. He's made the right-back position his own, usurping his English competitor Nathaniel Clyne in the process.
He's a local lad, a Liverpool supporter, but he also has the talent to back it up. To start a Champions League final against Real Madrid at the tender age of 20 is mightily impressive and indeed this made him the youngest Liverpool player to achieve this.
This summer, Alexander-Arnold was named as a nominee for the Golden Boy award, given to the best player in Europe under the age of 21. Right-back hasn't been a problem position for England in recent times, with Kyle Walker and Gary Neville being assured presences, but with the former being preferred by Southgate at centre-back these days, the position is Alexander-Arnold's to lose. He's calm in possession, skillful in attack, and diligent in defence; everything needed to be a world-class right-back.