Jack Wilshere ‘shouldn’t go to the Euros — he hasn’t played enough’ — Sol Campbell says Roy Hodgson has a midfield dilemma
Former Arsenal and England centre-back says Wilshere is short of fitness and match sharpness for the tournament
SOL CAMPBELL has revealed he would not take Arsenal star Jack Wilshere to the Euros as he has not played enough football to warrant a place.
England boss Roy Hodgson believes the injury-prone midfielder, 24, is a “special player” despite only playing three games all season – but former Spurs and Arsenal defender Campbell, who played 73 times for England and in six major tournaments, thinks it is too much of a risk.
He told SunSport: “I don’t think Jack will make the final 23. Roy has a dilemma - does he bring players such as Wilshere and [Jordan] Henderson who are top quality but who have just come back will be slightly short of fitness, whatever they may say?
“Or does he bring someone who has played all the time, and brilliantly, such as [Danny] Drinkwater, but is short of big tournament experience?
“For some reason, I think he will [Fabian] Delph as Roy likes his versatility, so for me it is a toss up between Wilshere and Henderson.
“Before he got injured, Jack was playing excellently, but he simply does not have the games. I think he’ll take Henderson over Wilshere, not because of skill, but for lack of football and Henderson’s steady nature.”
As well as Wilshere, Campbell believes Marcus Rashford will be cut as he is not ready, while Andros Townsend has not shown quite enough to warrant selection.
He added: “Rashford has had an wonderful season, he has an incredible future ahead of him and if he continues his trajectory, he will be number one striker in the next three, four, five years.
“But this is one tournament too early for him. You look at Walcott going in 2006 when I was in the squad and we could all see he was nowhere near ready – so if you bring someone in of that age just for experience, you are wasting someone who can actually do something for you who is a little bit older, perhaps in their last tournament who will want to go all out.
“And I’m not sure he will take Townsend – if he goes, it is because he is the only one who seemingly wants to play left side.
“But he only came good at the back end of the season, and even then he was not electrifying – not forgetting of course that he can be very temperamental.”
Roy Hodgson’s side head to Euro 2016 in France with a wealth of attacking options - but their ambitions may be hindered by their shaky back line.
Chris Smalling was sent off after two clumsy challenges in the FA Cup final on Saturday, while both John Stones and Gary Cahill have had inconsistent seasons.
And Campbell believes it is not necessarily about individual performances, but a sense of coherence and understanding with the defensive midfielders that is key to a successful tournament.
He said: “Dier can play in there if they have an injury crisis and be an auxiliary centre back, which is an option.
“Stones will get experience; he won’t start, it will be Cahill and Smalling. Stones has the ability to play, he can definitely in.
“But for me it’s not about individuals, it’s about the relationship between the whole back four and the one or two guys in front of them.
“They need to protect the centre backs and communicate with the back four to fill in in needs be, especially if a diamond is played and the full backs bomb on.
“I worry that Dier, for example, is not the sort of player to fill in and cover on the flanks, and if they are to succeed they have to treat it more as a back five or six, not a back four.
“It’s a team thing, because they do not have outstanding individuals in defence, so the relationship as a team is critical – so that someone will fill into a position without even thinking about it. If they don’t have that, they will be exposed even more.”
And Campbell is confident England can have a successful tournament, if they really lift the shackles, and prepare properly given some players’ lack of fitness.
He said: “Youth is a myth for me – Cahill, Hart, Milner and Rooney can steady the ship, you always need that in a team.
“But some of the guys, such as Henderson, need to do more training. He will say he is fit, but he will be short of international football, so it is what Roy has the lads going in between the games to get them up to speed which is crucial.
“If we steer clear of the likes of Germany, France and Spain, they have a good pathway to get the final.
“For me though, they need a different approach, to be more attack minded while not allowing teams to weave through them at the back. They need to press high and go from there.
“The law of averages says if a team keeps getting into good positions something will happen. So the fewer times opposition get into those areas, the better chance we’ll have. But I really feel they can get there with a bit of luck and no shortage of skill.”
Campbell was speaking at the William Hill Euro 2016 preview evening in London. To win the tournament, England are 8/1, Wales 66/1, Republic of Ireland 100/1 and Northern Ireland 250/1.
