Tony Cascarino believes Adam Wharton will ‘do well’ to make Thomas Tuchel’s England squad for the World Cup.
The Crystal Palace star played the second half of the Three Lions’ 1-1 draw with Uruguay as he came on in place of Jordan Henderson.
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However, it will be Wharton’s only contribution for England during this international break as he was one of eight players to leave the camp due to injury concerns.
It means the onus is now on the 22-year-old to recover and perform for the Eagles in the run home in order to land a spot on the plane bound for the World Cup in June.
Smoke on the Whart-er
Yet even if Wharton plays out of his skin, Cascarino fears it won’t be enough to force his way into the starting line-up when England face Croatia on June 17.
“I don’t think Adam will play,” Cascarino said.
“I don’t think he’s in the starting line-up. I think he’ll do well to make the squad.
“He’d done alright when he came on the other night, I thought he came on and he handled it really well.
“But I’m not too sure how close he is to the full squad.”
Since Tuchel took charge of England, he has typically employed a 4-2-3-1 formation.
Which midfielders are likely to start for England at the World Cup?
Should the former Chelsea boss continue the trend at the World Cup, Arsenal star Declan Rice is all but certain to be one of the holding midfielders in the starting line-up.
Nottingham Forest ace Elliot Anderson looms as a likely candidate to partner Rice given he has played in six of the last seven England fixtures.
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With Wharton’s skill set similar to that of Rice and Anderson, it means he is likely to be further down the defensive midfield pecking order for the Three Lions.
Garner-ing praise
Further muddying the waters of Wharton’s World Cup hopes is Tuchel’s praise for Everton midfielder James Garner, who made his Three Lions debut against Uruguay.
Garner, who has even deputised at right-back for the Toffees this term, played in the middle of the park on Friday and earned immense plaudits from Tuchel.
“I’m very happy [with Garner], he’s our mini (Federico) Valverde,” Tuchel said.
“He’s getting there, and he played very, very good. I was quite sure that he will play good because he has this natural confidence and he’s just very physical. He won a lot of balls.”
Real Madrid superstar Jude Bellingham is another midfielder who is all but guaranteed a spot in Tuchel’s World Cup squad, even if he has struggled with injuries this term.
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There’s also England stalwart Henderson, who was brought back into the international fold by Tuchel having not played a single Three Lions fixture in 2024.
Henderson, 35, would bring vast World Cup experience should be be included given he has featured in the last three iterations of the tournament.
The Brentford star along with the other candidates vying for a spot in Tuchel’s World Cup squad will look to make a lasting impression on the German when the Three Lions host Japan on Tuesday.
