UEFA Nations League

GARY LINEKER revealed the three young England stars he is tipping to make it into Gareth Southgate’s Euro 2024 squad. Southgate is due to make his final selection just before the tournament kicks off in June in Germany.
Gary Lineker revealed his tips to make England’s Euro 2024 squadCredit: YouTube / The Res Is Football
And England legend Lineker was asked which players – not yet capped at senior level – would he pick to board the plane.
He said on The Rest is Football: “Blimey, put me on the spot there! I think maybe (Jarrard) Branthwaite from Everton, I think he has got a chance.
“I think it’s just an area of the team that Gareth might give someone a chance.
“I know Cole Palmer’s already been I think in the England squad and played, so it doesn’t quite count. But I think he’s got a real chance of making the squad.
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“And I will go with Kobbie Mainoo as the other one because he has impressed me so much. I mean he’s so young obviously, I think he’s just 18.
“So, to do what he’s doing is quite remarkable at a club like Man United, so I think he might just sneak in.”
Here, SunSport looks at the budding trio picked out by Lineker.
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Jarrad Branthwaite
The defender, 21, has emerged as one of the brightest centre-backs in the Premier League and attracted heavy transfer interest from top clubs.
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He has made 29 appearances with two goals to his name and represented England at Under 20 and U21 level.
Southgate has chopped and changed his centre-back pairings in recent years but left-footed Branthwaite looks to be a strong new candidate.
Jarrad Branthwaite is tipped to make England’s squadCredit: Getty
Cole Palmer
The playmaker, 21, has been a rare spark in Chelsea’s dark season since making his £45million move from Manchester City.
He has 12 goals in his 30 Blues games this season and has shown versatility playing both out on the right and through the middle.
Palmer has two senior England caps but faces heavy competition in the wide and central Three Lions positions.
Cole Palmer has shined for Chelsea this seasonCredit: Getty
Kobbie Mainoo
The teenager has proved a sensation in United’s midfield this season and is already being compared to legendary names like Clarence Seedorf.
Mainoo has 16 first-team appearances this season and recently scored a last-gasp winner against Aston Villa.
Many predict Mainoo will have a similar rise to Jude Bellingham and are already pitting the two to form a formidable partnership.
Kobbie Mainoo is tipped as a future England starCredit: Getty More

AARON RAMSEY is refusing to give up on his Euro 2024 dream.The Wales skipper is out with a calf injury and his Cardiff boss Erol Bulut last week ruled out for between four and six weeks.
Ramsey’s injury is not as bad as first fearedCredit: Getty
That looked set to rule the ex-Arsenal and Juventus star, 33, out of the Dragons’ Euros play-off semi-final with Finland in Cardiff on March 21.
But midfielder Ramsey will keep fighting in a bid to be fit for the Cardiff City Stadium showdown next month with Wales just two possible wins away from the Germany finals.
SunSport understands the injury, sustained in training with the Championship outfit less than two weeks ago, is not as bad as first thought.
And that has given Ramsey a glimmer of hope.
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But, despite the boost, Ramsey still faces a real race against time to be available for the semi-final with a potential final against either Poland or Estonia in the Welsh capital five days later.
Ramsey is giving everything in a bid to be ready and will work alongside physio Sean Connelly, who is based at the Vale of Glamorgan HQ where Cardiff and Wales both share a base.
He could be available for that play-off camp but is unlikely to have had any match action before the international break.
And, considering he had only returned with two appearances since a knee injury which kept him out for five months, Ramsey’s lack of game time would be a major risk.
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But the possibility of Ramsey, who has played at two Euros finals and the World Cup, being available would be a major boost for boss Robert Page.
His experience, leadership, big game mentality and composure are all viewed as assets for a young Welsh squad including the likes of Brennan Johnson, 22, Ethan Ampadu, 23, and Jordan James, 19 as Wales bid to qualify for a third straight Euros finals.
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JARROD BOWEN should start ahead of Bukayo Saka for England this month.Arsenal fans will be choking with fury or laughter at the suggestion that the West Ham forward could be preferred to their golden boy.
Jarrod Bowen is gunning for an England start after hitting the goal trail againCredit: Getty
Bukayo Saka is one of Gareth Southgate’s most important playersCredit: 2023 The FA
But there are very good reasons why Bowen deserves the chance to show what he can do against Brazil and Belgium.
And why Three Lions Gareth Southgate should consider giving Saka a bit of a breather ahead of a big few months for club and country.
Bowen’s hat-trick against Brentford made him the top-scoring Englishman in the Premier League with 14, level with Ollie Watkins and Dominic Solanke and just one behind overall leader Erling Haaland.
When you add the 27-year-old’s workrate, fitness and desire to that raw statistic, Bowen cannot be left out of Southgate’s squad for the last friendlies before he names his longlist for Euro 2024.
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But why should Bowen start ahead of Saka? Because Southgate and the whole world know the Arsenal star’s qualities.
Because only injury will prevent him starting for England in their opening game against Serbia on June 16.
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And because the 22-year-old is more likely to get injured before the Three Lions head to Germany if he isn’t managed carefully after the amount he has played in the last three and a half years.
Saka has featured in 133 of Arsenal’s last 140 Premier League games, starting 128 of them. 
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No doubt Saka wants to play every minute. No doubt, either, that Gunners boss Mikel Arteta would love him to take it easy ahead of the final push for glory.
But it also makes sense.
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What if Saka DOES get injured? Based on form and characteristics, left-footed Bowen is the obvious choice to play on the right of the attacking three behind Harry Kane.
“What about Phil Foden?”, Manchester City and England fans will cry.
Bowen’s goal stats alone put him among the top players in the Prem this season
The numbers suggest Saka is undroppable
Well, Southgate does need to work out where Foden, who is also having an outstanding season, fits into his team.
But could that be, should that be, on the left wing, rather than the right?
That’s where Foden played in the World Cup in Qatar, where he claimed he gave his best performance in an England shirt against Senegal in the last 16. 
It would be useful to see whether he could again perform well in that position against top opposition like Brazil and Belgium. 
Neither Marcus Rashford nor Jack Grealish is making a strong case to occupy that left-sided berth in Southgate’s first 11.
And neither of them deserves to go to Germany or play ahead of Bowen, based on the season so far.
Bowen has 16 goal involvements in the Premier League, to Rashford’s eight and Grealish’s four.
The West Ham man has created as many big chance as Rashford (six) and more than Grealish (three). Bowen works harder off the ball, too, with 30 tackles compared to the Manchester United man’s 13 and the City star’s 12.
Rashford has had a poor season so far compared to the heights he hit last year
Grealish is another England star who will be hoping for an upturn in form ahead of the Euros
The big question is whether Bowen is an international class player.
The honest answer is: we don’t know for sure, and nor does Southgate.
The England boss gave Bowen his international debut in a Nations League game in Hungary in June 2022.
It’s fair to say he didn’t grab the opportunity with both hands. But he was playing in an under-strength, experimental England team that individually and collectively deserved the 1-0 defeat they received.
A wretched campaign unfolded, with fans turning on Southgate to such an extent that he thought about quitting before the World Cup.
Bowen was hooked at half-time of the humiliating 4-0 home defeat by Hungary but it was hardly the best environment for a player who had never represented his country at any level before.
He was left out of the squad for Qatar and was not picked again until last October when he played the full 90 minutes in the friendly against Australia.
Bowen did not pull up any trees in that game. But again, it was a much-changed England team that featured arguably none of Southgate’s first-choice 11.
Foden has been superb this year and could take the left-sided slot
Palmer has hit the ground running in West London and is in with a shout for a starting spot in the friendlies
If nothing else, West Ham’s main man deserves the chance to show what he can do if he lines up in a stronger Three Lions line-up.
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West Ham boss David Moyes wouldn’t like it, but you can make the argument that Bowen should start both matches. Or at least one, maybe with Chelsea’s Cole Palmer given his head in the other.
And if that means Saka sitting out one or both of them, so be it. More

GARY LINEKER has urged England boss Gareth Southgate to pick three exciting youngsters for the Euros.On the recent episode of his The Rest is Football podcast, Lineker was asked which three uncapped players he would take to Euro 2024.
Cole Palmer scored a sensational third goal in Chelsea’s 3-2 win at LutonCredit: Getty
Branthwaite is looking to stake claim to get into Gareth Southgate’s squadCredit: Getty
The TV presenter wants Manchester United’s Kobbie Mainoo, Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite, and Chelsea forward Cole Palmer on the plane.
The trio are in good form in the Premier League and first-choice for their respective bosses.
Palmer is the only one of the three to have featured under Gareth Southgate.
Ex_man City star Palmer has been on fire this season following his shock £40m move in the summer.
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The 21-year-old is the team’s top scorer with 12 goals in all competitions and has been one of the bright lights in Mauricio Pochettino’s side.
Lineker said: “I know Cole Palmer’s already been in the England squad and played, so it doesn’t quite count, but I think he’s got a real chance of making the squad.”
Branthwaite was another player mentioned on the podcast and he played alongside Palmer for the England U21s last summer who won the European Championship.
The 21-year-old centre-back has since kicked on to become a key player for Everton this season despite the team’s struggles.
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Lineker added: “Blimey, I’ve been put on the spot there.
“I think maybe Branthwaite from Everton, I think he’s got a chance.
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“It’s just an area of the team that Gareth might get to give someone a chance.”
The last player mentioned was Mainoo, who has been an absolute revelation in midfield at Old Trafford.
The 18-year-old, also eligible for Ghana, scored a last-minute winning goal away at Wolves earlier this month and his performances have certainly caught the eye of Lineker.
The Spurs legend added: “I mean, he’s so young, I think he’s just 18.
“So to do what he’s doing is quite remarkable at a club like Manchester United. So I think he might sneak in.”
Academy graduate Mainoo also qualifies to play for GhanaCredit: Reuters More