Joe Gomez was at the centre of the plaudits after Liverpool’s win over Man City and talk of a possibile return to the England squad has therefore occured.
Liverpool’s No. 2 has not represented the Three Lions since August 2020 following time out through injury and his shift down the pecking order at Anfield.
This season, he has already made 10 appearances, seven from the start, as he combines centre-back duty with minutes at right-back as Trent Alexander-Arnold‘s deputy.
Injuries to Joel Matip and Ibrahima Konate have kept the door open for Gomez this season and a similar opening with England leaves a chance for a World Cup place for the 25-year-old.
Both Kyle Walker and Reece James face a race against time to be fit for Qatar and they’d arrive undercooked if selected, and this is where Alexander-Arnold could also benefit.
Gareth Southgate is not short on options in defence and the Telegraph‘s Matt Law says the England boss has “remained a fan of Gomez’s talent and temperament and would not take much persuading to recall him.”
The onus, of course, would be for Gomez to continue to feature prominently for Liverpool, as he did against City with Southgate’s assistant Steve Holland in attendance.
Man United‘s Harry Maguire, who has played just five games this season, has been a favourite of Southgate’s but is currently injured and out of form – Liverpool fans could tell you the clear choice when both players are fit, though.
The issue is, Southgate will have his preferences having not worked with Gomez for some years, and he faces an uphill battle to make an argument for being in the squad at this late stage, even if his talent is admired.
Conor Coady (Everton), Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa), Ben White (Arsenal), Marc Guehi (Crystal Palace), Fikayo Tomori (AC Milan) and Eric Dier (Tottenham) will also all be in the centre-back discussion.
England announce their 26-man World Cup squad on November 10.
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