On Jarell Quansah, Curtis Jones and Adam Wharton…
We watched Curtis last summer with the Under-21s and he had very good spells during this season. He missed spells with injury, had a very unfortunate red card and at the end of the season dropped out of Liverpool’s team but we saw enough to be excited about what he can bring.
Adam really adapted to life in the Premier League. Very composed with the ball, Palace finished the season well so that all camo together for their players in nice time. He’s only just got into the Under-21s but we’ve seen enough to suggest he’s a player we’d like to see more of.
Jarell had a super season with Liverpool. His manager picked him in games when other high-profile players weren’t. He’s had an amazing transition from a loan spell down the leagues last year and he has great attributes as a centre-back.
I’ve said to these boys that we’re only taking 26. They might be ready now but it might be that this is brilliant experience for them for the future. I can’t give anybody any guarantees because we don’t quite know all the other injury situations.
On Kobbie Mainoo…
The curious thing about young talent is how will they cope under pressure. You can see the technical ability but it’s about how tactically aware they are, how mature, ability to cope with big matches. When you’re playing for Manchester United you’re always under the spotlight. He’s shown that with them, with us in March. We’ve never been afraid to put young players in. If players are good enough we’re not so concerned about their age. Kobbie has had an amazing season and it was fabulous for him to finish the season with a goal and a trophy.
On playing Bosnia & Herzegovina at Newcastle…
To play for your country is very special but bringing the team on the road is something that we’ve enjoyed doing. You never want to lose that aspect. We’ve got a nice contrast this week of being able to do both but we’re England and we represent everybody. I’ve played in the North East and I know how passionate people are about their football. It’ll be a brilliant night, really looking forward to that. We had a level of opponent in March that were ranked in the top five. We didn’t necessarily want that for this camp because the demands here are about getting the right physical aspect to the game as well as trying one or two things and getting the combinations going.
On facing Iceland at Wembley…
Another tough opponent. The focus for these two games is very much on what we’re doing. By the time of this game we’ll have a few more of the boys who were involved in the cup final. I don’t think we’ll involve Jude [Bellingham]Â in that game, he’s obviously got the Champions League final this week, which is massive for him. It would be too quick to put him into that game. It’s a chance for Wembley to send the team off and we’ll hopefully be really clear in our mind on our 26 and where we’re heading.
On reaching 150 senior England games (57 as a player and 93 as a manager)…
I hadn’t clocked that until somebody told me before our last match. It’s incredible, I’m really proud of it. If you’d said to me when I was 14 years old that I’d play for England, that was the dream. To have the impact with our junior teams and then the involvement I’ve had for 10 years now at St George’s Park has been a privilege. It’s a special landmark but you’re always looking for the next one. It’s less now about accumulating games. There’s something missing from this England career and that’s the opportunity this summer. The desire to push the team now, to win this tournament, is huge. That’s ultimately why we’re here.
On EURO 2024…
There are so many aspects to being with this group of people that I love. We have some really special people who bring brilliant energy to the group. That’s what creates the environment that the players come into and can feed off. Ultimately we’re trying to form a team and a group that have got to push each other and be there for each other. There’s a team dynamic that’s crucial to winning that we have to find. People will have slightly different roles that they will with their clubs. At their club, all of these guys are pretty much first choice on the team sheet, so some have different roles in the next few weeks. The challenge of winning the games and the excitement of seeing our fans out there in some of the biggest occasions in world football is why you’re in the game really. That’s what we’re looking forward to.
On reducing the squad to 26…
It will be extremely difficult. It was very difficult to leave players out of this 33 and of course there are some younger players coming in with slightly different expectations to this camp. But there are going to be some difficult calls to make. We’re hoping that not too many of these calls are decided by injury and we’ve got the strongest possible squad to pick from.