Trent Alexander-Arnold

After he was omitted from England's squad to face Germany, it looks increasingly likely that Liverpool right-back Alexander-Arnold won't be on the plane to.

“In international football, you don’t have the time to generate that sophistication of press that you have at Liverpool,” he told Off the Ball. And even if Southgate tried to adapt England’s style to accommodate Alexander-Arnold, Wilson adds, the nature of the international game would make this an onerous endeavour, given the only intermittent opportunities that a country’s coach gets to work with their players on the training ground. Before Monday’s entertaining draw with Germany, indeed, Southgate’s men had failed to score in four out of five games, and hadn’t found the net from open play since March. “Kieran Trippier is playing exceptionally well and Reece James has been one of the outstanding players in the [Premier] League. Mills also suggested that the versatility that Walker, James and Trippier all provide is also likely to influence Southgate’s squad selection for Qatar 2022. However, although Alexander-Arnold has established himself as a hugely potent element of Liverpool’s attack, other observers see an insurmountable conflict between England’s tactics and his marauding forward forays. Speaking on his FIVE podcast, former England captain Rio Ferdinand also expressed his bafflement at Southgate’s reluctance to pick the Liverpudlian: “How is Trent not in the squad? “It’s sad, it’s a waste, and it’s England’s loss,” The Times’ Henry Winter tweeted in the wake of Alexander-Arnold’s omission against Germany. Reece James, as well, can do those [right-back and centre-back] roles.” Alexander-Arnold’s passing ability does offer the potential of using him in midfield, but Southgate has only been persuaded to try the player out once in the England engine room, for the first half of a 4-0 World Cup qualifying win over Andorra in September 2021. An unused substitute in the 1-0 defeat in Italy on Friday - a result that confirmed England’s relegation from the top tier of the Nations League - Alexander-Arnold was left out altogether at Wembley on Monday, joining James Ward-Prowse, Fikayo Tomori and Jarrod Bowen in being excluded from manager Gareth Southgate’s 23-man matchday squad. Of the team’s three other notable options at right-back, Kyle Walker has played 17 times in the same period; Kieran Tripper, 12; Reece James, 11. At right-back, we have an abundance of talent.”

Southgate sparked headlines on Monday morning when it emerged that Alexander-Arnold had been left out of his 23-man squad to take on Germany at Wembley.

With a 26-man squad to be named for the World Cup in November, there is still scope for Alexander-Arnold to be included, but with James starting against both Italy and Germany, his place is in no way assured. “At the moment, Keiran Trippier is playing exceptionally well and Reece James has been one of the outstanding players in the league at the start of the season. There is still a convincing case to believe that he won’t make the plane, with Southgate seemingly preferring Kieran Trippier, Reece James and Kyle Walker, but the England manager has denied he is out of the running.