Jack Grealish is reportedly set to make his first start of Euro 2020 against Czech Republic on Tuesday evening.
Gareth Southgate has come under increasing pressure to include the Aston Villa playmaker in his starting XI.
He resisted vociferous calls from the British public against Scotland but did eventually bring him on as a substitute after 63 minutes.
However, Mason Mount’s absence appears to have forced his hand as Grealish prepares for his first start of the tournament.
Having come into close contact with Billy Gilmour following England’s clash with Scotland last week, Mount, along with Chelsea teammate Ben Chilwell, now has to self isolate until Monday.
According to a report from the Daily Mail, Grealish is set to replace Mount in the XI, much to the delight of the vast majority of England supporters.
The fans have been fairly unanimous in their stance on Grealish throughout the 2020/21 season, but Southgate doesn’t appear to share the same level of enthusiasm.
Now that Mount is absent, though, the Three Lions manager looks all set to give Grealish the opportunity to showcase his talent to the world on one of the biggest stages of all.
Elsewhere, there is further team news emerging from the report, with Bukayo Saka set to take Phil Foden’s place in the XI in what is a relatively surprising move from Southgate.
That means there’s still no place for Jadon Sancho despite his excellent form at Borussia Dortmund in the 2020/21 campaign.
Sancho has been capped 19 times by England at just 21 years of age but – if Saka does indeed step into one of the attacking midfield positions – appears to be well down the current pecking order.
Following his lengthy lay off through injury, Harry Maguire is hoping to earn his first start of the tournament in place of Tyrone Mings according to David Ornstein, and Kyle Walker is also expected to return at right-back.
With Shaw expected to continue at left-back, the expected back-four looks like England’s strongest on paper and this could be an invaluable opportunity for the first-choice five – including Jordan Pickford in goal – to play alongside one another before the round of 16.
