England World Cup squad: Eight Man Utd & Man City players selected by Gareth Southgate

Nine Manchester-based players have been included in Gareth Southgate’s England World Cup squad.

The 26-man group which will travel to Qatar was announced on Thursday afternoon, and it is heavily made up of players from Manchester United and Manchester City. Indeed, almost a third of the squad consists of those who play their home matches at Old Trafford and the Etihad.

From United, Harry Maguire was called up despite his lack of minutes in recent months, while Marcus Rashford also returns having not played for the Three Lions since the final of Euro 2020. Luke Shaw is the third United player selected, with Dean Henderson and Jadon Sancho missing out altogether.

As for City, Kyle Walker and Kalvin Phillips will be on the plane to Qatar. Both players have struggled with injuries over the last six weeks and have undergone surgery to address respective shoulder and groin issues.

Phillips returned to the City team on Wednesday night, playing 40 minutes in the 2-0 EFL Cup win over Chelsea, while Walker hasn’t featured for the Premier League champions since the start of October. However, despite a lack of fitness for the duo, they’ve been selected by Southgate.

John Stones, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish, three players who played a pivotal role for England at Euro 2020, will also be jetting off to Qatar next week.

James Maddison, Conor Gallagher and Callum Wilson were also included by Southgate, but there’s no room for Fikayo Tomori, James Ward-Prowse, Ivan Toney, Tammy Abraham, Dominic Calvert-Lewin.

Squad in full

Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale

Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Conor Coady, Eric Dier, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Kieran Trippier, Kyle Walker, Ben White

Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Conor Gallagher, Jordan Henderson, Mason Mount, Kalvin Phillips, Declan Rice,

Forwards: Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Harry Kane, James Maddison, Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka, Raheem Sterling, Callum Wilson