Southgate explains Tomori’s maiden England call-up for Euro 2020 qualifiers

England manager Gareth Southgate has said that Fikayo Tomori’s selection for the Three Lions resulted from the fact that he has been performing consistently over the past year. The young centre-back made his breakthrough under manager Frank Lampard in late August and he has since been an undisputed starter in the Premier League and Europe.

Schmeichel says Paul Pogba is the problem child for Red Devils

Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichel has said that Paul Pogba is the problem child in the Red Devils setup, given he does not have a definite role in the starting lineup. The France international has been with the Red Devils for the past three years and during this period, he has been regularly swapped between the different midfield positions.

Speaking on Optus Sport, Schmeichel said that Pogba is playing very deep in the midfield and that has limited his impact in the attacking point of view. He added that the France international is probably the problem child in the squad, given he has not been able to produce a consistent run of performances for the side.

He said: “He’s playing very, very deep and I don’t understand what his role in this team is. Even when Ole made the substitutions and put Pogba further forward, not a lot happened. I agree there were two very good passes from Pogba in this game but it’s two, it’s not 15 and I kind of see that as a problem because he takes up so much attention and it kind of feels like he’s the problem child in this team.”

Pogba has been struggling with an ankle problem over the past month and his availability for the Arsenal game came as a surprise, considering he had suffered a swelling on the same ankle during the League Cup tie against Rochdale in midweek. Despite being passed fit, he could not make much of an impression, given he was played in a defensive midfield role by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

United’s 1-1 draw against Arsenal has propelled them to the top half of the table in the 10th spot with nine points. This has created an unwanted record, given they have now registered their least amount of points after seven games in a single Premier League campaign.

England manager Gareth Southgate has said that Fikayo Tomori’s selection for the Three Lions resulted from the fact that he has been performing consistently over the past year. The young centre-back made his breakthrough under manager Frank Lampard in late August and he has since been an undisputed starter in the Premier League and Europe.

Speaking in a press conference, Southgate reserved praise for Chelsea manager Frank Lampard, who has taken the incentive to offer opportunities to a number of young players. He added that Tomori has been on the radar since his under-20 World Cup success with the Young Lions and the upcoming internationals will allow him to have a close look on the centre-back.

He said: “I think what’s been great for us in terms of England is to see Frank [Lampard] as a coach getting an opportunity at a big club and he’s playing a lot of young English players. Fik was in our Under-20s when they won the World Cup and has played very well, so we think it’s a good time to have a closer look at him and work with him.”

The Blues started off the season with Andreas Christensen and Kurt Zouma as the preferred central defensive partnership with Tomori acting as the back-up. However, Tomori has been able to leapfrog ahead of Zouma over the past month but there have been occasions where the trio have played together in a changed 3-4-2-1 formation.

Antonio Rudiger is expected to return from a groin problem after the forthcoming break but Lampard has clearly stated that Tomori can be regarded as a starter regardless of the German’s comeback. The Blues are scheduled to face Southampton on the road before the international break. They can potentially jump into the top four, should the other results go their way.