The heartache of England's defeat in the final of Euro 2020 lingers on, but with Qatar 2022 appearing on the horizon there is cause for optimism. With seven of the 11 players who featured in England's semi-final defeat to Croatia at the 2018 World Cup starting Sunday's Euro 2020 final against Italy, Southgate has shown faith in a core group of players but also a willingness to introduce new faces into his England set-up. Injuries permitting, the likes Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling and Harry Maguire could pack their bags for Qatar right now, but to think the England squad is a closed shop would be wrong. Trent Alexander-ArnoldImage: Trent Alexander-Arnold was denied a place at Euro 2020 by injuryA day after being named in England's final 26-man squad, Alexander-Arnold's Euro 2020 dreams were snatched away by a serious muscle tear on the eve of the tournament. If anyone was on course to be taken to Euro 2020, it was Barnes, but like so many others, his promising campaign came to a shuddering halt by a season-ending knee injury.

Source: Sky sports July 16, 2021 16:30 UTC