England Squad Announced: Jermain Defoe Back In The Pack As Gareth Southgate Calls Up Raft Of New Faces

Chris Wright

16th, March 2017

3 Comments

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England have announced their squad for the upcoming friendly against Germany and the World Cup qualifier against Lithuania thereafter and the headline news is that Jermain Defoe has played his way back into the fold.

Having scored 14 goals for Sunderland so far this season, 34-year-old Defoe is now in line to win his first international cap since November of 2013.

The 34-year-old will be vying for action alongside Jamie Vardy and Marcus Rashford in an extremely thin-looking stable of strikers.

Elsewhere, Gareth Southgate has given first senior call-ups to Michail Antonio, Michael Keane, Nathan Redmond and James Ward-Prowse, while Jake Livermore is also recalled having won one cap in 2012.

The England squad in full…

Goalkeepers: Joe Hart, Fraser Forster, Tom Heaton

Defenders: Gary Cahill, Phil Jones, Chris Smalling, John Stones, Michael Keane, Ryan Bertrand, Luke Shaw, Nathaniel Clyne, Kyle Walker

Midfielders: Eric Dier, Adam Lallana, Jake Livermore, Dele Alli, Michail Antonio, Ross Barkley, Jesse Lingard, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Nathan Redmond, Raheem Sterling, James Ward-Prowse.

Strikers: Jamie Vardy, Jermain Defoe, Marcus Rashford

By heck, Gareth’s given us a lot to contemplate there, though kudos to him for having the gumption to include a wider field of options.

And Defoe’s call-up is long overdue. In fact, England could have probably used his services at both of their last botched tournament outings.

Oh, and no Wayne Rooney or Theo Walcott. That’s nice too.

Any thoughts, Pies fans?

The Three Lions are scheduled to face Germany in a friendly at Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park on 22 March before squaring off against Lithuania in a World Cup qualifier at Wembley on the 26th.

Posted in England, International football, Newsnow

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3 Comments

  1. VieuxSang says:

    Defoe is overdue, I agree he could have done something sooner. Look at what he’s done at the collective messes he’s dropped into. As for that Gully Dwarf Rooney, are they REALLY going to miss him? Not much of a talisman or a strength, just dragging the whole ship down for the sake of him. You could pluck the plumpest from a hen party, and still have a stronger effect.

  2. eeny says:

    Just hope Rashford gets to play.

  3. Archer says:

    Thank God it’s only Lithuania and a friendly against Germany. Not exactly a team of world beaters, is it?

    Mediocre Man U players (Luke Shaw FFS) and the rest inexperienced.

    I have to say I would have Rooney down as a starter

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