World Cup 2018: 5 high-profile players who didn't make England's 23-man squad

#2 Ryan Bertrand

Ryan Bertrand has been dropped despite appearing in the majority of World Cup qualifiers for England

In arguably the most surprising call from Southgate, Southampton left-back Ryan Bertrand has been left at home despite appearing in the majority of England’s qualifying games for the tournament. Bertrand being cut is a shocker as nobody was really calling for his removal and he didn’t appear to have done much wrong in his recent performances for the Three Lions.

The most likely reasoning for his exclusion is that Southgate wants to use a system in which his wing-backs provide the majority of England’s attacking play, and in that sense, Tottenham’s Danny Rose and Manchester United’s Ashley Young appear to be stronger choices despite Rose only appearing in 10 Premier League games for Spurs in 2017/18.

Add in the fact that Fabian Delph has returned to the squad as a midfielder, but only after playing the majority of the season as a left-back for Manchester City, and it becomes clear that Southgate simply felt that England have enough cover in the position. It seems harsh on Bertrand but it’s a call that probably makes sense.