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Gareth Southgate on England's World Cup squad
England midfielder James Maddison posted a sweet childhood throwback after learning that he will be part of the 26-man Three Lions squad for the World Cup. There was plenty of clamour for the in-form Leicester star to be recalled by manager Gareth Southgate ahead of the tournament.
Maddison has not played for England since 2019, earning his only cap in a Euro 2020 qualifier against Montenegro. The 25-year-old has not been called up since, even when his Premier League form made him difficult to ignore.
Southgate has finally turned to the former Norwich ace in time for the World Cup. Maddison has now responded by posting a photo of him as a child in an England shirt.
"It hasn’t sunk in… I’m going to The World Cup,” Maddison tweeted with a crying emoji. He added: “Dreams really do come true.”
In the picture, a young Maddison is beaming in a red England away shirt. His face is painted with the St. George’s cross.
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The playmaker wrote a similar tweet when he made his debut in the 7-0 victory over Montenegro in November 2019. Now his pinned post on his account, @Madders10, he accompanied a childhood photo of him donning the 2006 World Cup kit and another of him playing in the qualifier with the words: “Just a young lad from Coventry with a dream.
“Last night I fulfilled that dream of playing for my country @england can’t begin to try and describe the satisfaction it gave me. Thankyou for all the messages.”
Southgate had attempted to call Maddison on Thursday morning confirming that he would be in the World Cup squad. But the Foxes star missed the call and later caught up with Southgate while in boss Brendan Rodgers’ office.
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It hasn’t sunk in… I’m going to The World Cup������ Dreams really do come true������������������������������������������������������ pic.twitter.com/DeKTECv3XT
"He's playing really well, he's a good player and we've always said that. He's earned the right," Southgate said of Maddison in a press conference later in the day.
“We think he can give us something slightly different to the other attacking players we’ve got. I think at various stages there have been conversations, debates about James – there’s been moments where ahead of the Euros I don’t think he was in contention and (in) September was probably a fair debate, but I think he’s playing as well as any of the attacking players in this country."
"We like that he finds those pockets of space, he gets turned, he plays forward; not enough players play forward in this day and age. Of course, his set play delivery is outstanding and he can score goals from distance, which against low block defences is another attribute that is a little bit different to some of our other players."