Kelvin Wilson has shared which player should have missed out on the England squad at the expense of Nottingham Forest star Morgan Gibbs-White.
Gareth Southgate put the nation out of their misery yesterday by naming his provisional 33-man England squad ahead of Euro 2024.
Many of the Three Lions who have served Southgate so well over the last two tournaments have been left out.
Marcus Rashford, Kalvin Phillips and Jordan Henderson have all been told to book holidays as they won’t be needed in Germany.
With emphasis placed on a younger squad, Forest fans felt that Gibbs-White should have got the nod.
Now, Wilson concurs with the fan base and he’s gone a step further by naming the player he should have been in ahead of.
Kelvin Wilson shares which England player should have been replaced by Morgan Gibbs-White
It’s a bit of a blow for Gibbs-White to miss out when Southgate is looking at so many players in the training camp.
Gibbs-White posted something on his Instagram story – but it was promptly deleted – and he might have fancied a crack at getting in the squad.
Now, Wilson has picked the player who should have missed out at the expense of Forest star Gibbs-White.
He said on the Forest Focus podcast: “If you’re asking me should he be in that squad over James Maddison? Yeah, I’d have Gibbs-White over Maddison, I really would.
“If he was at a club higher up than Forest, he would be in.”
Forest star Gibbs-White can now get well-earned rest
England will surely give Gibbs-White a chance at some point but for now, it’s all about rest and recuperation for the Forest star.
The Reds performer didn’t have much of a pre-season ahead of the 2023/24 campaign after playing in the Under-21 European Championship.
That can only benefit Forest and hopefully, he can come back revived and ready to make it impossible for Southgate to leave him out in future.
Gibbs-White v Maddison: Who deserved the England nod?
The Three Lions boss has often reiterated that he will pick players based on their form and not the clubs that they play for.
In terms of choosing Maddison over Gibbs-White, he hasn’t done that this time.
Maddison cost Tottenham £40 million in the summer and he’s enjoyed an okay first campaign.
That said, he has been playing for a team that has ultimately qualified for Europe.
Gibbs-White has 15 goal contributions this season in a Forest team that has just about scraped to Premier League survival.
As a result, Southgate might have slipped up here and if Gibbs-White played for Tottenham and Maddison was at Forest, there is no doubt in our mind who would have been picked.
The England boss might have said he’s pick players on form but the stats this season don’t lie.
Maddison has played just six times for England and it’s not as if Southgate can even suggest that he’s always done a solid job for his country.
In our view – and Wilson’s – Forest star Gibbs-White has been absolutely robbed.
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