Gareth Southgate insists Marcus Rashford has a ‘battle’ for a place in England’s Euro 2024 squad with Anthony Gordon, Cole Palmer and Phil Foden.
Rashford has endured a difficult season for Manchester United with just seven goals in 34 appearances in all competitions so far.
The United forward has been included in England’s latest 25-man squad for the side’s Euro 2024 warm-up friendlies against Brazil and Belgium during the upcoming international break.
But Southgate has warned Rashford and Manchester City’s Jack Grealish that their position on England’s left flank is under threat from several players.
‘He has a battle on his hands with Gordon, with Palmer, with Foden, so we’ve got big competition for places in that area,’ Southgate said.
‘What happens while players are with their clubs is club matters, because they know the full story. Obviously, we observe everything, we don’t miss anything. I don’t say behaviours off the field are irrelevant, because clearly they’re not. But the key thing is we are mainly focusing on the performances on the field.
‘He’s got big competition. So has Jack.
‘These guys are playing well: Gordon, Bowen, they’re scoring regularly, they perform well for the team, they defend well, they work hard, they compete and we’ve got really good options.
‘I can’t guarantee anybody. We know in certain positions who our best players might be – Kalvin Phillips I think is still in that position, but at this minute, I can’t go with that, so I’m hoping he can hit that form.
‘We know what Marcus can bring to us but equally everybody has got to perform well between now and the end of the season. That’s the environment we’re in.’
Speaking about Gordon’s improvement since joining Newcastle, Southgate said: ‘I like the way he competes, he’s aggressive with the ball and positive.
‘He has quality, he can retain the ball under pressure; he’s quick, speed is something that frightens full-backs and he has that. And he scores goals: he’s added that little bit more consistency to his goalscoring in the last couple of years.’
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