HAVING named a provisional 33-man squad ahead of next month’s European Championships, England manager Gareth Southgate still has the unenviable task of culling seven players from his group.

But while the extended selection meant there were few surprise inclusions or omissions, there are a number of England hopefuls who have reason to feel disappointed at not having made the cut.

Here, we take a look at five players not named in England’s provisional Euro 2020 squad whom Southgate may come to regret not picking.

Fikayo Tomori

“Fikayo is a player with particular characteristics, pace and intensity,” legendary Italy defender Paolo Maldini said AC Milan’s on-loan Chelsea centre-back Fikayo Tomori in February. “From a physical standpoint we believe he’s a guy who can make the difference.”

A ringing endorsement from one of the greatest defenders ever to lace up a pair of boots wasn’t enough to convince Southgate that the 23-year-old was worthy of a place in England’s Euro squad.

Fikayo Tomori kept a clean sheet in 44% of his starts this season.

Milan kept a clean sheet in just 31% of games without Tomori in the starting XI. pic.twitter.com/XgWNplgJn7

— Matchday365 ⚽️ (@Matchday365) May 26, 2021

Having fallen out of favour at Stamford Bridge at the start of the 2020-21 season, Tomori was shipped to Milan in January. And since arriving at the San Siro, he has been a standout performer for the Serie A runners-up.

The Canada-born centre-half has impressed with his recovery speed, timing and comfort in possession in Italy, but still the likes of Conor Coady, Ben Godfrey and Ben White have gotten the nod ahead of him.

James Maddison

A year or so ago, the prospect of James Maddison missing out on a Euro place would have been unthinkable. The inventive Leicester City midfielder was one of the Premier League’s emerging stars, a No.10 with the skill and vision to unpick defences at the top level, the kind of which the Three Lions have lacked in recent years.

But this season has seen Phil Foden and Jack Grealish both eclipse Maddison as Southgate’s best options in the role, leaving the former Norwich City playmaker an outcast.

“He’s had a season that’s unfortunately been disrupted by injury and in more recent weeks he hasn’t always been starting as well,” Southgate said in the press conference for his squad announcement, before noting an area in which Maddison had been usurped at club level, too.

“It’s been quite interesting, he hasn’t been taking set-pieces, Tielemans has been taking their set-plays. I don’t know if there’s anything more involved in that.

“In the most simple terms we feel we’ve got players in that area of the pitch and at the moment we see them as just ahead of James.”

But while Madison’s omission is certainly justifiable, a player of his creativity and set-piece reliability would be an asset as a late-in-the-game wildcard at a major tournament.

Patrick Bamford

 Few players have complied as compelling a case for England selection this season as Patrick Bamford, yet few could have been as unsurprised by having not made the cut.

The former Chelsea striker has been outstanding as the spearhead of a thrilling Leeds United side, scoring 17 Premier League goals and scoring seven more. Yet, at 27, Bamford remains uncapped at the senior international level.

Harry Kane is, of course, the immovable occupant of England’s No.9 position, but there is little to separate the strikers vying to be the skipper’s understudy. With the all-round quality he has consistently demonstrated for Leeds this term, Bamford could hardly have made a stronger case for himself.

So Patrick Bamford, the second best striker in England had been snubbed for the Euros… lol Gareth Southgate must be kidding pic.twitter.com/2KWLQtj4eL

— ᴄʜɪʟʟʏ (@chilly_machilly) May 25, 2021

Eric Dier

The opposite of Bamford, there is little justification for Eric Dier’s inclusion in England’s squad this summer based on his form with Tottenham Hotspur, yet his omission was something of a surprise given his regular presence in recent years and his apparent status as one of Southgate’s trusted squad members.

"He’s been a key player in some of our biggest moments and unfortunately I don’t think his season has been long enough to be in the squad,” Southgate admitted. “That’s a difficult call because I know how much he brings to the whole group.

"When you’re at a tournament those team players who put the team first are critical. It wasn’t an easy conversation but he’s an outstanding professional and he took it in a really professional way."

Southgate referenced the relative inexperience of his squad in his press conference on Tuesday – 18 of the 33 players selected have fewer than 10 senior caps. Even considering his lack of form, then, leaving out a player of Dier’s experience was a big call.

Another view of Sir Eric Dier's free kick goal. #EURO2016 #ENG pic.twitter.com/ZAQq6G7Bnl

— Borak Bola (@borakbola) June 11, 2016

Danny Ings

Southampton striker Danny Ings can also consider himself unfortunate not to have been included in the extended squad.

The 28-year-old has score 12 goals for Southampton in the Premier League in 2020-21, but perhaps most impressively, he showed a knack for scoring against high-calibre opposition, having netted against Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham (3).

"There is of course Danny [Ings], Patrick Bamford have had very good seasons,” Southgate said when asked about leaving out Ings, “and I've said that before but we didn't see any reason to change these positions from the players who did very well with us in the three qualifiers that we won in March."

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