England Starting XI: Who Should Make the Cut?

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England manager Roy Hodgson may have named his provisional 23-man squad for the upcoming World Cup, but he has yet to lift the lid on who will comprise the starting XI for the World Cup opener versus Italy in Manaus.

England are due to enter the training camps as well as embark on three upcoming friendlies against Peru (May 30, Wembley), Ecuador (June 4, Miami) and Honduras (June 7, Miami). This should give Hodgson ample opportunity to see who’s at their top of their game and fine tune his starting line-up before the big day.

Now, we’ll take a gander at some of the players we think might make the grade and win themselves a place on the field.

Old standby Steven Gerrard has the highest average rating in the entire squad, according to WhoScored, and is probably a shoe-in. Gerrard’s a proven anchor and will do a typically great job holding the midfield together.

Southampton’s rising star, Adam Lallana, enjoyed a strong season with many fans feeling he was instrumental in helping the club finish a respectable 8^th in the Premier League. England currently doesn’t have a natural fit down the left hand side, but Lallana –a natural two-footer- would plug into that position perfectly, balancing out the left side of midfield.

Last, but not least, we’re serving up Phil Jones. Historically this position would be filled by Liverpool’s very own Glen Johnson, but after some shaky performances –most notably the Merseyside club’s total implosion against Palace- he has fallen out of favour.

With that in mind, we’d like to see Jones take his place. The Man United defender has proven his flexibility, bouncing between many different positions on both a club and international level, and might just give England the edge they need.