IF only Gareth Southgate could pick a whole team of right-backs. The England manager’s recent squad announcement for the UEFA Nations League matches against Belgium and Iceland, as well as the friendly against Republic of Ireland, suggested that’s exactly what he wishes he could do, with no fewer than five players in the same position picked.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, Reece James, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Kieran Trippier and Kyle Walker all got the call from Southgate. There was, however, a notable omission, with no sign of Aaron Wan-Bissaka in the England squad. Someone was likely to miss out, but Southgate’s decision to leave out the Manchester United man was the wrong one.
“It's an area of the pitch where we are blessed,” Southgate said when asked to explain his thought process. “Reece and Trent have both played as wing-backs as well as full-backs. They are in outstanding form and we are probably stronger there than in any other position. Aaron is a very good defender, one against one he's probably as good as I have seen, but I have to look at the balance of the team and currently there are players ahead of him.”
Southgate’s comments on his team’s “balance” don’t quite align with his decision to overlook Wan-Bissaka. While it’s true the likes of Alexander-Arnold and Trippier in particular are most natural fits for the England manager’s favoured system, the inclusion of Wan-Bissaka would have offered true balance.
Wan-Bissaka isn’t just the odd one out in terms of his place in the England squad, but in the way he plays the game. Full-backs are defined in the modern game by the threat they offer in an attacking sense, but the 22-year-old bucks this trend. Instead, Wan-Bissaka is a defence-minded full-back.
Southgate confirms that Wan-Bissaka is left out of the England squad behind Trent and James.
"It’s an area of the pitch where we are blessed. One against one, he is as good as I have seen, but I have to look at the balance of the team, currently there are players ahead of him.”
— The United Stand (@UnitedStandMUFC) November 9, 2020
There is no player in the Premier League tougher to get past at this moment in time than Wan-Bissaka. He is revered for his strength in one-on-one duels, very rarely allowing opposition wingers to beat him. What the United right-back lacks in attacking instinct, he more than makes up for in defensive resolution.
This is why Wan-Bissaka should have been picked in an England squad that had places for five right-backs. All of the players in that position selected by Southgate are of the same type. Wan-Bissaka would have given Southgate a different tactical option. He would have allowed England to play in a different way.
It’s not as if England don’t have wingers to provide width and attacking threat higher up the pitch. Southgate already has the likes of Jadon Sancho and Raheem Sterling to do this. With Wan-Bissaka in the squad, England could even play a back three, with the 22-year-old on the right side of a central unit and a more attacking figure, like Alexander-Arnold or Trippier, in a wing-back role.
Southgate is right to hone his system and strategy ahead of next summer’s European Championships, and it’s understandable if he wants to primarily use a more attacking player in the right-back role. Wan-Bissaka is getting better in what he offers going forward, but his crossing in particular doesn’t compare to that of Alexander-Arnold and Trippier’s.
But Southgate will need a Plan B, and probably a Plan C too, if England are to mount a genuine challenge to be crowned European champions. This is where the disregard of Wan-Bissaka as a credible option seems short-sighted. He might not be the type of right back Southgate envisages in his team, but that’s exactly why there should be a place for him in the squad.
