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Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford and More: The Superstars Who Were Ignored for the England Squad Just Before the World Cup

Published 05/24/2022, 3:32 PM EDT

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The World Cup in Qatar is edging closer every day. The club season is almost over with only the Champions League final left to play now. As a result, all nations are preparing their teams during this international break. However, players like Jadon Sancho and Luke Shaw won’t be there to represent their countries any time soon.

Manchester United have had one of the worst seasons in their recent history, and every single player barring Cristiano Ronaldo and David de Gea have been dismal. Just a few months ago, Sancho, Shaw and Rashford were one of the main players in the squad, but they will now have to do a lot to convince Gareth Southgate of their contention.

It doesn’t help their case that other players in their position have actually stepped up their game too.

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The players called up by Gareth Southgate

The usual suspects in the England squad were all still there, as the likes of Harry Kane, Jordan Pickford and Trent Alexander-Arnold made the squad. Other mainstays of the team, like Kyle Walker, Declan Rice and Raheem Sterling, were in there too.

However, Southgate did spring a few surprises for English fans as he called up Marc Guehi, Jarrod Bowen and Fikayo Tomori to the squad. Replacing the out-of-form, Luke Shaw was Leicester City defender James Justin, another relative newcomer.

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Interestingly, Tottenham Hotspur duo Eric Dier and Ryan Sessegnon missed out on the squad after having a wonderful season for their club.

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Manchester United stars miss out on the squad

On the other hand, Manchester United captain Harry Maguire kept his place in the squad and is likely to start in the friendlies. Maguire has been heavily criticized this season for his club form and hasn’t performed to his usual levels.

Marcus Rashford and Luke Shaw have barely played this season with a combination of injuries and bad form keeping them out. Moreover, new Manchester United arrival, Jadon Sancho, has struggled to make it to the United starting eleven over Swedish youngster Anthony Elanga.

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If things don’t improve next season, these stars would miss out on the flight to Qatar. It’ll be interesting to see if they can turn it around next season.

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Written by:

Aniket Awasthi

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Aniket Awasthi is a soccer author at EssentiallySports. This STEM undergraduate combines an insatiable urge to write with his admiration for soccer to enhance his journalism. He lists charismatic names like Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcus Rashford as his favorite players, but he is a great admirer of Karim Benzema too.
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Edited by:

Melroy Fernandes