Paul Merson slams England’s decision to leave West Ham United star James Ward-Prowse out of the team Paul Merson has slammed England’s decision to leave West Ham United star James Ward-Prowse out of the squad as “ridiculous” considering his start to the season for West Ham.
Despite his good showing since moving to the London Stadium, Gareth Southgate left the Irons midfielder out of his team for games against Ukraine and Scotland, preferring Kalvin Phillips and Jordan Henderson.
Merson and Michael Dawson were both astonished by Southgate’s decision not to choose the 28-year-old for the September fixtures, especially given Phillips’ lack of playing time this season.
“I look at James Ward-Prowse in that and think, is Kalvin Phillips playing?” Dawson said on Sky Sports Soccer on Saturday (2 September). No. Jordan Henderson has left for Saudi Arabia, and I believe he is the most important. He must be wondering why he isn’t in any teams.
“He’s always the one who probably gets the call to keep going, but he’s been doing this for a long time.” I feel bad for him since he undoubtedly misses Kalvin Phillips. We all know who Gareth is; he is extremely devoted to his players who have tried and trusted him and have never let him down.”
Paul Merson promptly responded, calling the midfielder’s exclusion “ridiculous.”
It must be extremely frustrating for Ward-Prowse to see players who hardly play for their club sides consistently pip him to England action, since it honestly feels like there is little else he can do to grab Southgate’s attention.
However, from a selfish standpoint, the Hammers may not mind that their new midfield signing will have a couple of weeks off and a bit of a rest so early in the season because it drastically minimizes the chances of him injuring himself during the international break.
Furthermore, it allows David Moyes to work with the midfielder more on the training ground after he missed a period of pre-season with the Hammers while the agreement to buy him from Southampton was finalized.
So far this season, there hasn’t been any indication that Ward-Prowse is still settling in with his new team in East London, and if he maintains his early-season form, he’ll be on Southgate’s radar for the October international break.
In other West Ham United news, the club attempted a last-minute attempt to sign a new striker on deadline day.
