England go into the European Championship this summer as one of the favourites to lift the trophy at the Olympiastadion in Berlin on the 14th of July. Gareth Southgate’s side have gone close before in major tournaments, but many pundits believe this is now their time to shine.
The England squad are likely to get a lot of support across the country, just as they do for all major tournaments. Here is a look at the players from West Midlands clubs who could be named in Southgate’s squad and represent England at the tournament.
Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa)
Aston Villa centre-back Ezri Konsa received his first call-up to the senior England squad for Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia. That was a reward for some excellent performances in the Premier League.
Southgate has been monitoring Konsa ever since the player made his Premier League debut in 2019. He is likely to get the chance to impress in an England shirt in friendlies against Brazil, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Iceland before Euro 2024 begins.
The England head coach is not fortunate to have as many options defensively as he does going forward. His back four at Euro 2024 may look much different to the one that reached the final of the European Championship in 2021.
Konsa, a player who may be in contention to start England’s opening game of Euro 2024, recently brought up his 150th Premier League appearance for Aston Villa. He is excelling under club manager Unai Emery in the West Midlands.
Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa)
After reaching double figures in each of his four seasons at Aston Villa, Ollie Watkins has proven himself to be a striker who is capable of scoring goals at the highest level. He has already scored 11 goals in the 2023/24 campaign, and he could be set to better his tally of 15 goals from last season.
Watkins has already played nine times for England, scoring three goals. He found the back of the net with his first shot on his debut against San Marina in 2020. Goals then followed in friendlies against the Ivory Coast and Australia.
The Aston Villa forward did not feature at Euro 2020 in the team that defeated Croatia to reach the final, but he now looks on course to be in the squad for Germany. He is likely to be the backup striker to Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane.
As well as playing in the centre-forward position, Watkins can be used as a winger. He played out wide in the early stages of his career. That versatility is likely to help differentiate him from other players that Southgate is considering for his squad.
As of the 9th of February, England are the 7/2 favourites in the Euro 2024 odds. They sit above France, hosts Germany, and Nations League winners Spain in the outright market. That is a sign of the firepower the Three Lions have available with Kane, Watkins, and Marcus Rashford.
Craig Dawson (Wolves)
With 18 appearances for England, Tyrone Mings would have had an excellent chance of making Southgate squad for the European Championship. The Aston Villa man was involved in the England squad for Euro 2020, starting their opening game against Croatia at Wembley. Unfortunately for Mings, he picked up a season-ending injury in Villa’s opening game of the campaign.
Mings’ loss could be Craig Dawson’s gain. The Wolves defender is having an excellent season in the Premier League, so he is sure to be on Southgate’s radar ahead of the tournament. Dawson is uncapped for the senior team, but he did feature for Great Britain at the Olympics in 2012.
The former West Ham player has shown throughout his career that he can also be a goal threat from set-pieces. He has scored 54 goals in senior football, an impressive number for a centre-back. If England are in desperate need of a goal in the dying stages of a knockout game, he is a great player to have on the pitch.
If Southgate is considering Dawson, he will surely hand the player his debut for the senior team in one of their four friendlies before the tournament. The two matches against Brazil and Belgium are perfect tests to see if he can handle the pressure of playing international football.
England will open their Euro 2024 campaign against Serbia in Group C on the 16th of June in Gelsenkirchen.