5 England players with a point to prove after the international break

The international break is over, and despite England picking up another six points towards qualifying for Euro 2020 after defeating Bulgaria and Kosovo, a lot of questions surrounding Gareth Southgate and his squad remain unanswered – most notably, who exactly belongs in his strongest line-up?

With no more internationals until October, the only way that Southgate’s players will have to impress him now is to perform well for their clubs, and of course, the Premier League returns this weekend just in time for that.

With the events of England’s last two games in mind, the following players will want to really stake a claim for a starting spot for the Three Lions over the next few weeks. Here are 5 England stars with a point to prove after the September international break.

#1 Marcus Rashford

It’s been an interesting few days for Marcus Rashford, as the Manchester United forward was in the news in the build-up to last weekend’s England vs. Bulgaria match, and not really for the right reasons.

Not only was his finishing criticised by United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but former England striker Michael Owen also entered the fray, suggesting that Rashford lacks the “killer instinct” required to be a genuinely top-class goalscorer.

Rashford had a chance to quieten his critics when he was selected to start the game against Bulgaria, but despite playing relatively well as a wide forward on the left side of England’s three-pronged attack, winning a second half penalty, he was unable to find the back of the net despite being presented with a couple of good chances. And when he was brought on as a substitute in the game against Kosovo, he missed another gilt-edged chance.

The most worrying thing for Rashford’s future England hopes? Not only did Jadon Sancho, the man who replaced him in the starting XI against Kosovo, score twice, but he also played on the right – enabling Raheem Sterling to play from his preferred left hand side and star in a Man of the Match-level performance.

If he wants to secure a spot in England’s starting line-up going forward, there’s no doubt that Rashford needs to start scoring more goals for Manchester United – his current record of 2 goals in 4 games isn’t bad, but could be improved on if his finishing was sharper.

United are faced with a tough test in the form of Leicester City this weekend – so there’d be no better time for Rashford to begin a goalscoring run.

#2 Harry Winks

Could Harry Winks help to solve England's midfield issues?

When England suffered a disappointing loss to the Netherlands in this summer’s UEFA Nations League semi-finals, observers and pundits alike seemed to recognise that the struggles of Gareth Southgate’s side came largely from the midfield area, where young Dutch star Frenkie De Jong was able to largely dictate play.

England fans bemoaned the lack of an English equivalent – but many pointed out that Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Winks, who was unavailable for that game due to a groin injury, could fill the role going forward.

Southgate himself suggested that Winks could prove to be a key man for the Three Lions in the near future, and sure enough he was restored to the squad for the Bulgaria and Kosovo games, but strangely, he wasn’t selected once, with the England boss preferring a midfield trio of Declan Rice, Jordan Henderson and Ross Barkley.

It was a curious call given Winks has started the season for Spurs brightly and has superior statistics to both Henderson and Rice when it comes to the number of passes he makes per game, his pass success rate and also the number of key passes he completes. It was particularly frustrating to see his lack of involvement given neither Rice nor Henderson really impressed against Bulgaria or Kosovo.

Clearly the only way for Winks to truly break through as a starter in Southgate’s eyes is to continue to perform well for Tottenham – and he could begin that with an impressive showing this weekend against Crystal Palace. With his passing skills Winks is a unique talent for England – he just needs to prove it to the Three Lions boss.

#3 James Maddison

What more does James Maddison have to do to gain an England cap?

Much was made of James Maddison being left out of England’s squad for the summer’s UEFA Nations League finals after he enjoyed a breakout season with Leicester City, a season that saw him create more big chances in the Premier League than any other player, including the likes of Eden Hazard and Bernardo Silva.

The word at the time was that Southgate wanted him to participate in the U-21 European Championships instead, and so after a bright start to 2019/20, it was no surprise to see him gain his second senior call-up for the games against Bulgaria and Kosovo. Unfortunately, a squad place was the best Maddison would get, as he was not involved in either game, even as a substitute.

Instead, Chelsea’s Ross Barkley was selected as England’s playmaker for both games, while his young club teammate Mason Mount made two appearances from the bench. Quite what Maddison needs to do to find himself properly on Southgate’s radar is a massive question mark right now given his club form was excellent leading into those games.

Obviously, the only way for him to force the issue will be to continue to play well for Leicester; if he keeps making chances and creating and scoring goals, surely Southgate can’t ignore him in the future.

A strong showing against Manchester United – a club who would be a major scalp for Leicester – this weekend would go some way to proving a point to the Three Lions boss.

#4 Tammy Abraham

Could there be a spot in the England squad for Tammy Abraham?

Few players have enjoyed as hot a start to 2019/20 as Chelsea’s young striker Tammy Abraham. Thrust into the role as the Blues’ main frontman under new boss Frank Lampard, Abraham struggled in his first couple of games but has since hit form in a big way, scoring braces against Norwich City and Sheffield United in his last two games.

Unfortunately, this surge of form came too late for him to be selected for England’s games against Bulgaria and Kosovo.

However, while it might be wishful thinking that Abraham could overhaul the imperious Harry Kane – who scored 4 goals in those two games – as England’s main striker any time soon, there’s no reason why he can’t find himself in Southgate’s plans for the October qualifiers if he can keep scoring goals for Chelsea.

Kane doesn’t have a lot of backup right now – Callum Wilson was the only other central striker named in the current squad, and the Bournemouth man has only scored once thus far this season and has limited international experience.

Could Abraham find his way into the squad alongside Wilson? There’s actually every chance he could. Jesse Lingard, who has been struggling for form, was named in the squad as an attacking midfield option, but Southgate could easily jettison him in favour of another striking option.

Given the Nigerian FA are sniffing around Abraham in an attempt to persuade him to switch international allegiance, it could actually be smart for Southgate to simply cap the Chelsea star in October to put an end to the speculation. If he can find the net this weekend when Chelsea face Wolves, the clamour for his selection will surely begin.

#5 Ross Barkley

Ross Barkley flattered to deceive for England against Bulgaria and Kosovo

While England’s defence has come under criticism for its performance against Kosovo, which saw the Three Lions concede three sloppy goals, perhaps no player has come under more fire for his performances over these two recent games than Chelsea midfielder Ross Barkley.

Despite not starting the season too strongly, Barkley was selected as England’s playmaker against both Bulgaria and Kosovo, and to say he flattered to deceive would be an understatement.

Simply put, Barkley was too much of a peripheral figure to really make an impact on either game; he played some nice passes and did win England a penalty against Kosovo, but largely went missing for swathes of both games, and with James Maddison and Mason Mount both hot on his heels for the starting spot as the playmaker in the midfield trio, he essentially failed to stake his claim strongly.

That’s why it’s so important for him to perform well when he returns to Chelsea this weekend. Southgate clearly likes his talents, and to be fair he did play excellently in England’s March qualifiers against the Czech Republic and Montenegro. But Chelsea boss Frank Lampard hasn’t quite seemed convinced just yet and has preferred Mount as his playmaker thus far.

Even if Barkley isn’t played in the same position as he’s featured for England, if he wants to really cement his spot in Southgate’s side he needs to be more consistent for Chelsea over the next few weeks. He arguably has more of a point to prove than anyone else simply because his place seems so at risk.