Harry Redknapp has questioned one Arsenal player’s inclusion in England’s World Cup squad.
The Gunners have 16 players in total representing their countries at this summer’s tournament in North America.
Four Arsenal players have been named in Thomas Tuchel’s 26-man England squad — Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke — while Ethan Nwaneri has also travelled as part of the training camp.
Not everyone, however, is convinced that all four England selections are justified.
Harry Redknapp has become the latest high-profile figure to question one of Tuchel’s picks.
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Speaking via The Sun, the former Tottenham and West Ham manager raised concerns about the number of England players heading to the World Cup without regular club football under their belts.
“Back in the day you had to be playing. You had to be a player in your team to get into the England team,” Redknapp said.
“A lot of these players now, they don’t get a game, they’re not in their teams at their clubs. Can’t get into the Arsenal team or play regularly at Brentford, and an awful lot of them don’t play on a regular basis. Jordan Henderson, a great lad, a great pro, but at the moment there’s too many players there I don’t see getting a game at their clubs who are suddenly in the England squad — the kid at Arsenal, Madueke.”
Redknapp isn’t the only one criticising Madueke’s inclusion. Wayne Rooney expressed similar reservations, suggesting he would have taken Cole Palmer ahead of the Arsenal winger.
Noni Madueke will be desperate to prove his doubters wrong at the World Cup
The argument against Madueke going is a fair one. The 24-year-old managed just two Premier League goals and one assist all season, with Saka the undisputed first choice on the right flank.
He did fare significantly better in Europe, though, providing four goal involvements in nine appearances during Arsenal’s run to the Champions League final.
Madueke came off the bench in the final against PSG, and he was lined up as Arsenal’s sixth penalty taker before Gabriel’s crucial miss — though he has been criticised for not stepping up to take one earlier.
Tuchel cited this ability to make an impact from the bench as a key reason for his inclusion, a role he has honed under Arteta.
That familiarity of coming on for the last 20 minutes with fresh legs in place of Saka might genuinely be the thinking here.
And the World Cup is an opportunity to silence his critics on the biggest stage of all. He will be fully aware of the noise surrounding his selection.
That, if anything, should make him even more determined to deliver.
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