Gareth Southgate should drop Phil Foden for ‘fearless’ Anthony Gordon when England play Denmark at Euro 2024 on Thursday.
That is the opinion of former Arsenal and Three Lions forward Theo Walcott amid the debate over how to get the best out of the struggling Foden.
The Manchester City attacking midfielder endured a tough start to the Euros campaign, being largely ineffective in the 1-0 win over Serbia last Sunday.
With Jude Bellingham starting at No.10 some have wondered whether someone else should play on the left-wing instead of crowbarring Foden in there.
Alan Shearer has suggested putting Gordon or Eberechi Eze into the starting XI, and Walcott concurs, backing the Newcastle winger, and his former Everton teammate, to make a huge impact.
‘I like Anthony Gordon. I’ve seen him up and personal,’ he said.
‘I like the fact that he likes to go on the outside, not that standard, sort of inverted winger.
‘He likes to challenge defenders, keep them guessing and I feel like you’re going to need something different, and that’s why he’s there. He’s there to provide something different for that squad.
‘So, if I was going to change things, I’ll probably put him in. I think there’s a lot of debate about Phil Foden at this moment in time, who’s best to play in those positions.
‘Obviously, Bellingham for me is a stand out player which then means you lose a lot of Foden’s qualities, so I would probably like to see Anthony Gordon if I’m being brutally honest.
‘He’s so exciting, he’s fresh and he’s fearless and I think you need that at international level.’
Gordon only has three caps to his name after making his England debut back in March, off the back of a brilliant season with the Magpies where he scored 12 and assisted 11 goals.
He was an unused sub against Serbia, with Southgate calling on West Ham forward Jarrod Bowen instead.