Arsenal star Ben White has been heavily criticised after it emerged that he rejected an England call-up, but there is more to it than meets the eye.
White has previously admitted that his interest in football does not extend far beyond his own playing career and professional duties.
Whilst Cesc Fabregas has pointed out that this is common amongst professional players, it was used as a means of attacking White from England coach Steve Holland, which prompted his exit from the World Cup squad last year.
White has since been criticised, with some claiming that his refusal of an England call-up was down to his lack of interest, but it simply stems from his fallout with Gareth Southgate and his coaching staff, and he has been treated very unfairly.
Declan Rice comments highlight unfair treatment towards Ben White
White’s Arsenal teammate Declan Rice claimed that he would speak to the defender to try and change his mind, and Rice also pointed out that Manchester City and England star John Stones holds a similar mindset to White when it comes to following football.
“The first day I came to join up with England I saw John Stones – and he didn’t even know they were playing us next! When he’s away from football he likes to be with his family and switch off, and I get that,” Rice stated of Stones.
“He likes to take one game at a time. I said ‘big game next’ and John said ‘who are you playing?’ And I said ‘we’ve got you lot!’ He said ‘oh yeah!’. That tells you how much we speak about it when we’re here!”
Ben White and John Stones share a similar attitude towards football
Stones is a key player for England and Man City, whilst White is a key player for Mikel Arteta. Both are centre-backs who have also developed superbly in other roles, demonstrating their technical ability and their willingness to learn.
It comes as a surprise watching both, that neither harbours a heavy interest in football beyond their duties.
Stones and White are both well within their rights to hold a healthy professional attitude to football, but it does show the hypocrisy of those currently criticising the Arsenal defender, when a player as popular as Stones shares the same attitude, and has received no such criticism.
Holland and Southgate’s treatment of White has created a situation where a top-class footballer does not currently want to play for his country ahead of an International tournament, and given that this situation came from Holland highlighting White’s attitude, whilst no such comment was made of Stones, emphasises how wrongly White has been treated.