“He’s a lad you cannot help but enjoy being around” – Micah Richards says confident England player will be ‘ready’ if called on to help during FIFA World Cup

Former England international Micah Richards has hailed Three Lions goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale ahead of the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Richards released a Daily Mail column where he provided insight into Gareth Southgate's men, revealing the players he was looking forward to seeing during the tournament.

🚨OFFICIAL: The Arsenal boys on the plane to Qatar with England:

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Bukayo Saka
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Aaron Ramsdale
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Ben White

Go & smash it boys!💪🏼 #afc https://t.co/Y41CYsA3ga

The former Manchester City defender spoke about Aaron Ramsdale, sharing only words of praise for the Arsenal shot-stopper:

“I met him recently during filming for 'A League of Their Own' and I was won over by him. He’s a lad you cannot help but enjoy being around and the confidence he has off the pitch has helped his performances. He goes to Qatar on top of the league with Arsenal and he will be ready if called on.”

Ramsdale has made just three appearances for the England national team since he was called up in 2021. However, the Arsenal forward will have some competition during the FIFA World Cup as Nick Pope and Jordan Pickford have all been called up to man the posts for the Three Lions.

Your #ThreeLions squad for the @FIFAWorldCup! 🦁 https://t.co/z6gVkRTlT3

Ramsdale is notably younger than his fellow England goalkeepers, with the Arsenal No. 1 being just 24 years old. He will hope to perform impressively when called up to the Three Lions' playing XI.

FIFA World Cup 2022: Six female referees set to make history in Qatar

The FIFA World Cup set to begin on 20 November will be a history-making one, with the first global showpiece set to provide the competition with its first-ever female officiants.

According to Marca, the competition will see six female referees among its officials for the first time, with a diverse cast of women from across the globe taking part.

Yoshimi Yamashita of Japan, Stephanie Frappart of France, and Salima Muksanga of Rwanda have been selected to feature in games as main officiants. The trio will also be joined by Kathryn Nesbitt of the USA, Karen Diaz Medina of Mexico, and Neuza Back of Brazil. These three will serve as assistant referees during the tournament.

All six women will be expected to pass the same fitness tests as their male counterparts. They will also need to maintain and judge the matches they officiate as well as possible.

However, there is no reason to think that they will not be up to the challenge. They will hope to be a part of the list of successes that will emerge from the upcoming World Cup.