Star forward Raheem Sterling will not be part of England’s squad to take on Montenegro after manager Gareth Southgate decided to reprimand the Man City star for his row with Liverpool defender Joe Gomez in the team restaurant. The pair had clashed over the weekend in in the league- a fixture which Gomez’s Reds won 3-1 against Sterling’s Citizens, and tensions appeared to carry over to the national camp, with Gomez apparently getting a cut under his right eye during the altercation.
While Sterling and several other players aren’t happy with Southgate’s decision, more so as the clash against Montenegro is a historic one (it is also England’s 1000th international fixture), the former Boro defender has the support of his bosses and has also told Sterling that he will be restored to the line up for their next fixture against Kosovo.
The Three Lions need only a point from their last two fixtures to book their spot at next summer’s Championships and are hot favourites to do so, according to this betting sites comparator. Montenegro are yet to win in qualifying (they’ve officially been eliminated) and have failed to score in each of their last four qualifying games. England beat them 5-1 when the two sides met in Podgorica earlier in qualifying.
England’s defeat to Czech Republic in Prague last month has made the Three Lions wait a little bit longer to confirm qualification for the main tournament. They lead the group with 15 points from six games, with the Czechs on 12 and Kosovo on 11. While England will take on Montenegro, the Czechs and Kosovo will do battle in Plzen.
Southgate has promised a youthful line up to take on Montenegro, potentially even younger than the side that beat Spain 3-2 in Seville last October. That side was the Three Lions’ youngest since 1959, with an average age of just over 23.
England are a formidable force at home- they’re unbeaten in their last seventeen European and WC qualifiers, and are on a six game winning run at home.
England’s last six home games
England 5-3 Kosovo
England 4-0 Bulgaria
England 5-0 Czech Republic
England 2-1 Croatia
England 3-0 United States
England 1-0 Switzerland
With Sterling dropped, Jadon Sancho is expected to replace him to form a three man attacking trident along with Marcus Rashford and Harry Kane. Another option could be for Southgate to include in form Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham.
At left back, Ben Chillwell is expected to get the nod over Spurs’ Danny Rose. While one central defensive spot is set to go to Harry Maguire, the other will be hotly contested, with Tyrone Mings, Gomez and John Stones all vying to partner the United star in the absence of Michael Keane.
The game will be refereed by Spaniard Mateu Lahoz.