World Cup

Gareth Southgate: 'World Cup squad far from decided'

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 25 January 2018

England manager Gareth Southgate says that he is not closing the door on any players ahead of selecting his World Cup squad, paving the way for Jack Wilshere to return.

Gareth Southgate has admitted that he is 'excited' by the prospect of whittling down his England squad as the countdown to this summer's World Cup continues.

The Three Lions boss has four months to go before selecting his final 23-man group for the quadrennial competition in Russia, for which his side qualified with a game to spare.

Southgate has big decisions to make across the field, most notably in goal where a number of his keepers are out of form and favour, but the 47-year-old is looking forward to making some tough calls.

"It's exciting. Every decision you're making - whether it's logistics, games you're going to watch, or looking at the opposition — everything is more relevant because you've got a real focus," he told reporters at the UEFA Nations League draw in Switzerland.

"You want to be involved as a coach or a player in matches that matter. Well, it's not a huge pool for me to choose from, but there's real competition for places in the squad. There's obviously guys we've worked with more but also people staking a claim for places and will do so until the end of the season - we're very open-minded. I'm not sitting saying the squad's decided.

"You've also got at the back of your mind a thing in your head, 'OK, if we went tomorrow who would that be?'. We would know who that would be now. But that could evolve with injury and form over the next few months. Everyone has to perform at a high level."

Probed on whether Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere was back in contention, Southgate added: "With someone like Jack, it's a real plus to see him playing at the level he is, looking as fit as he is. We know his quality, for him to be starting regular games, two a week, playing at a high level is a real bonus.

"We picked him in a couple of squads last season. But his level of performance is way above what it was then. He went to Bournemouth on the back of a long-term injury, so it was going to take time to recover from. He's really playing well now and influencing big games."

England will face the Netherlands, Italy, Nigeria and Costa Rica in friendlies prior to the World Cup finals.