England Squad September 2018: Possible winners and losers

With the World Cup furor over with, a strong showing in Russia signals at a new era in English football. With the friendlies squad to be released on Thursday being the first chapter in the new England story.

A month into the season and there have been quite a few players who have staked their claim to be part of the national setup, whereas many established stars are out of the reckoning due to poor level of performances and the recent retirements of striker Jamie forward and senior defender Gary Cahill.

A few big decisions to be made by Gareth Southgate.

Keeper Situation

England's Number 1- Jordan Pickford

A strong showing at the World Cup has all but sealed Jordan Pickford's status as the top dog when it comes to this department at international level. Everton's stopper has had a decent start to the season and his position should be safe.

The real scramble is for the spot of 2nd and 3rd keeper as it involves a massive scramble including the likes of Ben Foster, Joe Hart (yep, he's still around), Jack Butland and Tom Heaton.

Hart(R) and Foster - Both these Premier League mainstays are back in the England conversation.

Jack Butland who was at the world cup has had a decent enough start to the season, as has Ben Foster, who is part of an extremely rejuvenated Watford side.

The big story though is the return of Joe Hart after he has successfully kept the brilliant Tom Heaton out of the Burnley lineup.

This one is surely a toss up.

Wildcard: Tom Heaton (Burnley)

Old guard faulter and Young defenders in form

United's defensive duo seem out of touch

In addition to Cahill's decision, the performances put in by established England cap holders, Chris Smalling and Phil Jones must not have helped their chances in any way, shape or form.

Full backs Kyle Walker and Ashley Young have not had regular game time or starting opportunities, the same is the situation with John Stones of Manchester City.

Joe Gomez- the proverbial rock at the back for Liverpool

What this does is open the door for the likes of Joe Gomez, who missed the World Cup due to an injury and has since shown amazing form partnering Van Djik at the heart of the defence for Liverpool. Fellow Red Alexander-Arnold carrying on from last season has the chance to stake his claim as a permanent feature too.

Leicester's Harry Macguire and Tottenham's Keiran Trippier seem to be the ones who have carried on their good form from the summer in Russia, both scoring recently and looking fit and ready to go.

Wildcard: Aaron Wan Bissaka (Crystal Palace)

Midfield Shuffle imminent

The midfield is one of the most contentious areas for England in terms of being able to call up the right players and then being able to make them work well together. At the World Cup Jesse Lingard, Dele Alli and Loftus-Cheek forming a fluid midfield unit with Henderson or Dier holding was a glimpse of the future. Loftus-Cheek though seems to have lost his mojo and is highly likely to miss out and Jordan Henderson has not played a lot of minutes.

This mix of lack of fitness and form of the world cup team has opened the doors for a few forgotten stars and a few fresh faces to be a part of the conversation again.

On a comeback trail

Ross Barkley at Chelsea and Theo Walcott at Everton have had good starts to the season, starting regularly and showcasing a good level of performance. This seems like the right time for both these former wonder kids to get back in the team.

Will Hughes of Watford has carried on from his good form at the end of last season and him along with Demarai Gray of Leicester who's trying to replace Mahrez provide fresher options for Southgate to look at.

Wildcard: Phil Foden (Manchester City)

Strikers have opportunities

Jamie Vardy has retired, Marcus Rashford has played minimal amounts for Manchester United and an out of sorts Welbeck looks certain to miss out.

Basically, other than Harry Kane, England's striking choices are anyone's to guess. Callum Wilson, Danny Ings, Glenn Murray and Charlie Austin might look to capitalise.

Callum Wilson - Back in the game.

Callum Wilson and Danny Ings coming into the English setup together won't be a surprise considering they have had exceedingly similar career graphs recently. Both had serious knee injuries, finally coming back to form for their clubs after a period of frustration.

Danny Ings - back amongst the goals and looking at a place in the England squad next

Glenn Murray and Charlie Austin both provide similar threats and what's clear is that both won't be selected together. The duo would still be hopeful given the circumstances.

Wildcard: Troy Deeney (Watford)