MyBettingSites had the pleasure of sitting down with Liverpool and England legend John Barnes. He has told Gareth Southgate to end the Trent Alexander-Arnold midfield experiment by bringing in Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton, declaring the youngster as Southgate’s Kalvin Phillips replacement.
In this article:
- England have a Kalvin Phillips replacement in Adam Wharton
- Southgate will have to drop one of Foden, Bellingham or Saka
- Marc Guehi is well suited to international football
England have a Kalvin Phillips replacement in Adam Wharton
One of the huge talking points amongst fans and pundits after England’s dour 1-1 draw with Denmark has been the comments from England manager Gareth Southgate. The midfield has proven to be an area Southgate feels still needs work and he had hoped that Trent Alexander-Arnold would be a solution. However, the Liverpool star has been hooked twice in the early stages of the second half of both Euro’s games so far. Post game Southgate claimed “We know it is an experiment – we don’t have a natural replacement for Kalvin Phillips – but we are trying some different things.” However, former England winger John Barnes believes the solution is staring Southgate in the face in Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton.
“It really depends on how they want to play. I would like to see Adam Wharton because I think if you look at Denmark who aren’t the greatest of teams, they were dominating possession and outplaying England in midfield.”
“Declan Rice is really in there by himself because even when Trent’s there he’s not a defensive midfielder. It’s a new position for him. It will be a new position for him at Liverpool if he were to play there full time and it definitely is a new position for him in England, particularly the way they play.”
“So I think we need another body in there and Gareth has said it. We need another body in there and people ridicule him for it. They haven’t replaced Kalvin Phillips who is really a defensive midfield player who’s going to sit there.”
Southgate will have to drop one of Foden, Bellingham or Saka
Southgate has many things to ponder over the next few days with the likelihood being that one of Foden, Saka or Bellingham may have to miss out if a player like Wharton were to come in. Barnes worries that if Southgate were to drop one of the three England attacking players, fans and media alike would not be too happy.
“I think Adam Wharton is that. I think that Gallagher is more of an eight.. Box to box. He’s got lots of energy. He’ll run to the left and run to the right. He defends well. He’s all action, but he’s not a specialist if you look at it that way.”
“Wharton is an important player for Crystal Palace. He’ll sit in front of the back four. And I think if you want to play with the creative players of Bellingham, Foden or Cole Palmer you really need a holding midfielder.”
“If you look at Spain with Fabian Ruiz and Rodri, they just sit there. They sit there to play the ball forward. And they play the ball forward, you know, to other players. I’d like to see Adam Wharton but then you then have to leave out one of the superstars. Will the England fans and the press accept that? So Gareth’s got a lot of hard decisions to make.”
Marc Guehi is well suited to international football
One of the few bright sparks for England has been the performances of Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi who has deputised for the injured first choice option in Harry Maguire. Barnes praises the suitability of Guehi to international football and the calmness he’s shown in possession of the ball.
“His composure on the ball has been great and he even made a recovery when he lost the ball. He made a mistake but made up for it. He’s good on the ball. He’s a good defender.”
“International football will probably suit him because it’s not as if he’s a six foot three centre back whereby he’s going to play against big centre forwards when crosses come in because football isn’t like that anymore.”
“You have to be quick. You have to be able to read the game, you have to be good on the ball. So it suits him. Against Denmark when he came under a bit of pressure and he lost the ball he made that great recovery. He’s been very comfortable.“
