Germany’s players have been left stunned by Gareth Southgate’s decision to include Eberechi Eze in England’s Euro 2024 squad, overlooking Jack Grealish and James Maddison according to reports. Southgate announced his Three Lions squad for this year’s tournament in Germany earlier this week.
The omission of 28-year-old Grealish, along with Spurs ace Maddison, has raised eyebrows. Eze, who currently holds three international caps and is a target for Ange Postecoglou this summer, was chosen over the former Aston Villa captain. Other relatively inexperienced international players, such as Jarrod Bowen and Anthony Gordon, also made the cut.
Despite being considered an outsider, Palace forward Eze has managed to impress Southgate with his performances under Roy Hodgson and Oliver Glasner as well as his standout display in England’s 3-0 friendly win over Bosnia and Herzegovina. While Eze has his fair share of admirers, his inclusion over Grealish has reportedly surprised the German team, writes the Mirror.
The Independent suggests that many members of Die Mannschaft were “stunned” upon seeing the England squad set to compete in Germany. It is also suggested that Grealish is seen as a player who “provokes fear in opposition when he runs at them,” a sentiment they do not associate with Eze.
Grealish, a fan favourite and a key figure in the dressing room, gained cult status during England’s journey to the Euro 2020 final. His absence from the pitch was felt by many, with supporters frequently urging Southgate to bring him on as a substitute.
While fellow players like Maddison and Harry Maguire have voiced their disappointment and shown solidarity with the Three Lions, Grealish has yet to publicly comment on his omission. After the decision was made public, Maddison wrote online: “Devastated doesn’t quite cut it.
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“Trained well and worked hard all week but if I’m honest with myself, my form for Spurs when coming back from injury in the second half of the season probably wasn’t at the levels I had set which gave Gareth a decision to make. I still thought there would be a space for me in a 26 man squad as I feel I bring something different & had been a mainstay in this whole qualifying campaign for Euro 2024 in Germany but the manager has made the decision and I have to respect that.
“I’ll be back, I have no doubt. Wishing the boys all the luck in the world out in Germany, unbelievable group and lads that I literally call some of my best friends. I genuinely hope football comes home.”
When questioned about his decision to leave Grealish out, Southgate responded: “The players took the news respectfully. Of course players believe they should be in and that’s why they are top players because they have self belief and they have that mindset.
“But the fact is we have players who have been playing extremely well all season in the league and we just feel other players have had stronger seasons, particularly in the last six months or so. In the attacking areas we are blessed with a lot of options all slightly different.
“They’ve been tough calls, calls we’ve gone over and over as staff to try and be fair and to try and get the right rationale. We back our decisions, but we recognise we could have gone a different route.”
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