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Jack Grealish and Harry Maguire are among Thursday’s final cuts to England’s Euro 2024 squad.
Grealish was a regular for Gareth Southgate’s team and shone during the Three Lions’ run to the European Championship final in 2021, but he struggled to maintain his form at Manchester City during the 2023-24 campaign. Meanwhile, Manchester United’s Maguire hasn’t played since April due to a calf injury.
James Maddison, Curtis Jones, Jarrad Branthwaite, James Trafford, and Jarell Quansah also missed out, meaning Southgate has trimmed his squad from 33 to the required 26 players ahead of Friday’s 6 p.m. ET submission deadline.
England’s Euro 2024 squad
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford (Everton), Aaron Ramsdale (Arsenal), Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace)
Defenders: Kyle Walker, John Stones (both Manchester City), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), Joe Gomez (Liverpool), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Kieran Trippier (Newcastle), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Lewis Dunk (Brighton)
Midfielders: Declan Rice (Arsenal), Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United), Adam Wharton (Crystal Palace), Conor Gallagher (Chelsea), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool)
Forwards: Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa), Ivan Toney (Brentford), Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace)
The attacking options at Southgate’s disposal still appear stacked after shedding names from his squad. Eberechi Eze, Cole Palmer, and Jarrod Bowen started behind striker Ollie Watkins in Monday’s 3-0 friendly win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, while captain Harry Kane made an appearance off the bench with Maddison and Grealish. Ivan Toney was an unused substitute and Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, and Anthony Gordon were left off the matchday squad.
“Devastated doesn’t quite cut it,” Tottenham Hotspur playmaker Maddison tweeted after he was left out. “Trained well and worked hard all week but if I’m honest with myself, my form for Spurs when coming back from injury in the second half of the season probably wasn’t at the levels I had set, which gave Gareth a decision to make.”
Defensively, it seems Manchester United’s Luke Shaw has proved his fitness after appearing in just 12 Premier League matches during an injury-hit campaign. He joins fellow mainstays Kyle Walker, John Stones, and Kieran Trippier at the tournament. Joe Gomez and Ezri Konsa can play in more than one position in the backline. Marc Guehi and Lewis Dunk are center-backs.
Declan Rice headlines a midfield contingent that also features Trent Alexander-Arnold (who’s mostly appeared at right-back in his career), Conor Gallagher, and youngsters Kobbie Mainoo and Adam Wharton. Mainoo and Wharton have three senior England caps between them.
England’s final friendly before leaving for Euro 2024 is against Iceland at Wembley on Friday. Despite being omitted from the tournament squad, 21-year-old Liverpool defender Quansah is still with the group as cover and is available for that fixture.
