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Former Liverpool striker Michael Owen reckons England manager Gareth Southgate could have Brentford striker Ivan Toney on his radar ahead of the FIFA World Cup in Qatar later this year.
Toney, 26, has turned a lot of heads with his clinical performances in front of goal this season. He scored a stunning hat-trick in his team's 5-2 thrashing of Leeds United on Saturday (September 3).
After opening the scoring with a penalty at the half-hour mark of the contest, Toney doubled the hosts' lead with a superb free-kick just before the break. He completed his second Premier League hat-trick of the calendar year with a composed chip in the second half.
Taking to Twitter, Owen heaped praise on the former Newcastle United man and backed him for an England call-up. He wrote:
"Exhibition stuff from @ivantoney24 today. Brilliant hat-trick. Gareth Southgate will surely be taking a serious look at him."
Speaking at a post-match press conference, Brentford manager Thomas Frank also hailed Toney and backed him to make his international debut. He said (via BBC):
"Off the top of my head, looking at strikers on form, Harry Kane is number one, but there is not a better striker after Kane on form. Plus, England have been in a few penalty shootouts, and if they want to win one, they need to pick Ivan."
Toney joined Brentford from Peterborough United in the summer of 2020 after being named the EFL League One Player of the Season in the 2019-20 campaign. He guided the Bees to the Premier League in his debut season, scoring a record 31 goals in a single Championship campaign.
The Northampton-born attacker has registered 17 goals and seven assists in 41 Premier League games. He has netted five times and contributed three assists this season.
England set to have welcome headache for 2022 FIFA World Cup
With national team captain Harry Kane being a sure starter, the spot for the England backup striker has a lot of options.
AS Roma's Tammy Abraham is an obvious choice after his successful debut season in Italy, scoring 27 goals across competitions. Ivan Toney has recently emerged as an option with his productive performances this season.
Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins and Danny Ings, Leeds United's Patrick Bamford and Everton's Dominic Calvert-Lewin are also on the radar of Southgate ahead of the FIFA World Cup.
