Euro 2020: England picks 4 right backs, attacking mlidfielder Jesse Lingard misses out

England manager Gareth Southgate named four right backs including Trent Alexander-Arnold in his final 26-man squad for the European championship on Tuesday.

Harry Maguire and Jordan Henderson were included despite ongoing fitness concerns which make them doubtful for group-stage matches.

The seven players cut from the provisional 33-man squad named last week by England coach Gareth Southgate were strikers Mason Greenwood and Ollie Watkins, midfielders James Ward-Prowse and Jesse Lingard, defenders Ben White and Ben Godfrey, and goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.

Manchester United forward Mason Greenwood was withdrawn earlier due to an underlying injury to whittle the squad down from a provisional 33 named a week ago.

The dropped players will remain in the squad for pre-tournament friendlies in Middlesbrough against Austria on Wednesday and Romania on Sunday.

“We’ve still got two matches to play which they will be involved in and if we pick up injuries that group of players are the ones who are on standby,” said Southgate, adding that Lingard was likely to start against Austria.

“Basically they are in our best 26 footballers and that is why they are in the squad,” Southgate said, adding with a laugh: “If I could have picked a fifth or sixth right back, I probably would have done.”

Southgate is among those who has previously suggested Alexander-Arnold might be deployed as a midfielder in the future given his vision and eye for goal. He has never played as a midfielder in his senior Liverpool career, though, only at youth-team level.

Alexander-Arnold, Southgate said, was informed three weeks ago that he would be picked in the squad.

“Always believe in yourself. Silence the doubters,” the Liverpool player tweeted after being selected.

Southgate had given himself an extra week to decide his final 26 players because 12 potential picks were playing in European club finals last week, with United, Manchester City and Chelsea.

One player he sounded especially excited about was Jude Bellingham, a 17-year-old midfielder who has already established himself as a regular at Borussia Dortmund and who was particularly impressive in the team’s Champions League quarterfinal matches against Man City.

“He is phenomenal,” Southgate said. “Just in training the last couple of days, to have a 17-year-old compete with senior players — he not only has the technique but the competitiveness, the maturity. He is a hugely exciting player and we aren’t just taking him for the experience.”