Many were shocked when Jack Grealish missed out on the England squad, but for Crystal Palace supporters it was no surprise.
England kick off their Euro 2024 campaign a week on Sunday against Serbia and after a 1-0 defeat against Iceland, confidence won’t be as high as it should be.
Gareth Southgate has made his squad choices, and a lot of them have been controversial, for reasons different to his usual controversial decisions.
At previous tournaments, Southgate has been criticised for selecting his ‘favourites’, but this hasn’t happened this time, with four Crystal Palace players being named in the squad.
One of the players from Selhurst Park that he’s named is Eberechi Eze, with the 25-year-old being effectively chosen over Jack Grealish and now the German squad’s reaction to this decision has been reported.
How the German squad have reacted to Eze being named in the England squad
When Grealish missed out on the final England squad, it was reported that within the camp there was shock, with one player even voicing his concerns over the decision to Southgate.
According to the Independent’s weekly Miguel Delaney newsletter, Eze’s inclusion has been met with shock as many expected to see Grealish in the squad.
The hosts were shocked that Eze had been favoured to Grealish with the German camp believing the Manchester City winger to be a player who “provokes fear in opposition when he runs at them”, while they don’t view Eze in the same light.
The German squad’s shock is understandable given Eze only made his full England debut last week, and it was his red-hot end to the season – which included three goals and an assist in the last two games – which led to his involvement in the squad over Grealish.
Eze’s inclusion has been welcomed by the majority in England however, as Rio Ferdinand explained he’s a player Southgate must fit in.
The Germans will be in for a big surprise if they underestimate Eze
England against Germany is always a massive game when they meet and at this summer’s Euros, it would see the Germans on home soil. If the two sides meet it’d be the second consecutive Euros that they’d meet in with England winning 2-0 at Wembley.
This year, the earliest the two sides could meet is in the Round of 16 again, if England finishes second in their group it’ll book them a tie with Germany in the knockouts. But alternatively, if both top their groups – as expected – then they might not meet until the final which would be a massive clash.
In any event, Germany underestimating Eze would be a silly move considering what a talent he is and he could end up leaving a lot of the host nation players looking silly if this is the case.
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