
by Joga Bonito
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by Joga Bonito
Watch Live Football Streaming on GBP Sports:
England manager Gareth Southgate has named a 23-man provisional squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™, with a few surprise names making the cut in a youthful-looking list.
The most notable inclusions see uncapped duo Trent Alexander-Arnold and Nick Pope named, while Chelsea’s Ruben Loftus-Cheek – who has spent the 2017/18 season on loan at Crystal Palace – also makes the squad despite having never made a competitive appearance for the Three Lions.
The most notable omission is the experienced Joe Hart, who has just concluded a challenging season at West Ham United, and was England’s goalkeeper at the last three major tournaments: UEFA EURO 2012, Brazil 2014 and EURO 2016.
Southgate has named five standby players for Russia 2018: Liverpool midfielder Adam Lallana, Burnley goalkeeper Tom Heaton, his club team-mate James Tarkowski, 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup-winning captain Lewis Cook and Jake Livermore of West Bromwich Albion.
Southgate said the 23 names he selected are “a squad which we can be excited about.”
“It is a young group,” he told TheFA.com, “but with some really important senior players so I feel the balance of the squad is good, both in terms of its experience, its character and also the positional balance.
“We have a lot of energy and athleticism in the team, but players that are equally comfortable in possession of the ball and I think people can see the style of play we’ve been looking to develop.”
“The first call up for Trent Alexander-Arnold is well deserved. When we pick young players, it’s not just because they are young, it’s because their performances deserve it.”
All squads are provisional until the final list of 23 players is announced by FIFA, following their submission by participating teams, on 4 June.
Goalkeepers: Jack Butland, Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold,Gary Cahill, Fabian Delph, Phil Jones, Harry Maguire, Danny Rose, John Stones, Kieran Trippier, Kyle Walker, Ashley Young
Midfielders: Dele Alli, Eric Dier, Jordan Henderson, Jesse Lingard, Ruben Loftus-Cheek
Forwards: Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford, Raheem Sterling, Jamie Vardy, Danny Welbeck
On standby: Lewis Cook, Tom Heaton, Adam Lallana, Jake Livermore, James Tarkowski
The FIFA Appeal Committee has taken the following decision on the appeal lodged by Worawi Makudi, the former President of the Football Association of Thailand.
The FIFA Appeal Committee has partially confirmed the decision taken by the adjudicatory chamber of the independent Ethics Committee on 10 October 2016, reducing the ban from all football-related activities (administrative, sports or any other) at national and international level imposed on Mr Makudi from five years to three years and six months, and confirming the fine of CHF 10,000.
The investigation into Mr Makudi was opened on 23 July 2015. Mr Makudi was subsequently found guilty by the adjudicatory chamber of the independent Ethics Committee of infringing articles 17 (Forgery and falsification) and 41 (Obligation of the parties to collaborate) of the FIFA Code of Ethics.
While reducing the sanction imposed by the adjudicatory chamber of the Ethics Committee, the Appeal Committee agreed with the principles and arguments presented by the adjudicatory chamber. The ban imposed on Mr Makudi entered into force on 18 October 2016.
The last time Georgia Stanway headed to a World Cup, she did so as an unknown, with her team rank outsiders. Less than two years on, she is returning to the global stage with a very different outlook and profile.
Such has been Stanway’s progress since the 2016 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup that she will be one of the star names at the upcoming U-20 finals. This prominence has been earned by her fine form and spectacular goals for English giants Manchester City, with whom she has shone both domestically and in the UEFA Women’s Champions League.
And if there will be more expected of Stanway at this World Cup, the same could be said of her team. England have previously enjoyed only modest success at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup, and failed to even qualify for the tournament in 2016. But the ever-improving performances of their women’s sides, and the back-to-back World Cup conquests of the nation’s U-20 and U-17 men last year, have led to a raising of sights.
“We were definitely inspired by what the boys did,” Stanway told FIFA.com. “We feel we need to win something, and that’s the plan in France. That’s easier said than done of course. But we’re going to be going there to train hard and play hard, and hopefully we can come up trumps. The boys raised the bar last year and we need to go out and try to match them.”
Besides her clarity on that lofty target, Stanway also outlined England’s blueprint for achieving it. “We’ll be aiming to be the fittest team there and the team that works the hardest,” she explained. “We probably won’t be the most technical side at the tournament but if we’re at our fittest and work as hard as we possibly can, other teams will find it tough to stop us.”
Stanway herself has proved all but unstoppable this season, the highlights of which have included a run to the Champions League semi-finals, a Young Player of the Year nomination and a call-up to the senior England squad. Such experiences have also left the 19-year-old well prepared for another World Cup adventure.
“It’s crazy what can happen in two years and I’ve gained so much experience since the U-17s in Jordan,” said Stanway. “I’m just excited about France now because you can’t compare a World Cup to anything else – it’s an experience like no other.
“I’m definitely happy with the progress I’ve made this season. I always had my sights on establishing myself in the City team and getting into the England squad if I could, but it’s one of those situations where you still don’t believe it when it actually happens. The call-up for the SheBelieves Cup was a massive thing for me and my family and such a big boost, especially with the new manager (Phil Neville) coming in at that time. I loved every minute of it too.”
The same could be said of that debut World Cup in Jordan, when Stanway emerged as one of England’s most impressive players, scoring three times in their run to the quarter-finals.
“I didn’t want it to be over,” she reflected, two years on. “We were out there for about two months but when we got back home, the players all said we would have all gone back out there if we could. It was such a great experience and I came away so determined to make it to another World Cup. Now we’ve made it to one, I just can’t wait.”
Football News by Football Daily
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