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Tottenham’s Star Returns To England Squad Seven Years After His Only Cap
Tottenham striker Dominic Solanke has received a call-up to the England squad for matches against Greece and Finland, while Eberichi Eze, Harry Maguire, Marcus Rashford, and James Maddison have not been included.
Solanke has not played for his country since featuring against Brazil in 2017 but has been named in interim boss Lee Carsley’s 25-man squad for the Nations League games in the upcoming international break.
The 27-year-old has scored in his last three games for Spurs following his big-money summer move from Bournemouth.
Cole Palmer, Phil Foden, Jude Bellingham, Kyle Walker, and Ollie Watkins have returned to the squad after being unavailable for last month’s matches against the Republic of Ireland and Greece.
But Crystal Palace’s Eze has been left out after a disappointing start to the season.
Maguire, Rashford, and Maddison were all hoping for recalls but have not been chosen after mixed starts to their respective club seasons.
Carsley hinted he would freshen his squad up, but there are no uncapped players this time, with highly-rated Aston Villa forward Morgan Rogers not picked.
Morgan Gibbs-White, Noni Madueke, and Angel Gomes keep their places in the squad after their first-time call-ups last month.
Speaking at the squad announcement at St George’s Park, Carsley said, “Dom’s (Solanke) a player I’m fully aware of and worked with in the past he was close to being in the last squad.
“He’s taken that form from Bournemouth into Spurs; he has a lot of attributes I like, as well as being a nice person. He’s extremely talented and good we’ve got him.
“Like all of the players, it’s a challenge with the squad we’ve got. We have so many talented players.
“We always look at finding the balance, who complements who in terms of how we play and don’t get caught up in positions, it’s more the attributes and how we can potentially attack the opposition.
“There’s a lot of players that were close to being in the squad, the talent we have available to us.
“It would be quite easy to name a 40-man squad and justify having them all in, but the challenge is making sure we pick a competitive squad and one where we can win the two games.
“It’s just a case of using the next two camps to experiment a little bit and look at other players. The players who have been left out have all got a case to be in the squad but we saw the benefit of the other squad being fresh and feeling fresh and that it’s not a copy and paste.
“I’ve made it completely clear to the players that this is a short-term decision from myself. We have this camp and next to just keep playing good football for their clubs.”
Carsley’s task as interim manager
Carsley was appointed as interim manager in August after Gareth Southgate left his position following England’s defeat to Spain in the Euro 2024 final.
The 50-year-old oversaw victories in his first two games in charge against Republic of Ireland and Finland but insists his situation as temporary boss has not changed.
He added, “I think its clear what my remit is.
“It’s to take these three camps in the Nations League; I’m happy with that. My situation hasn’t changed and I’m looking forward to the camp.
“I know my situation and I’m comfortable with it.
“It’s been positive, people seem to be complimentary about the team and understand it’s early days.
“The difference would be everyone has an opinion on the England team, which is interesting. People are desperate for the team to win and do well and the ultimate goal is to win a major trophy.”
England will face Greece at Wembley next Thursday before traveling to Helsinki to take on Finland on Sunday.
England squad to face Greece and Finland
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Nick Pope (Newcastle United)
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Marc Guéhi (Crystal Palace), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Rico Lewis (Manchester City), John Stones (Manchester City), Kyle Walker (Manchester City)
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Conor Gallagher (Atletico Madrid), Morgan Gibbs-White (Nottingham Forest), Angel Gomes (Lille), Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Declan Rice (Arsenal)
Forwards: Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Noni Madueke (Chelsea), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Dominic Solanke (Tottenham Hotspur), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)
