Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk has admitted he was shocked to see teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold snubbed at international level by England boss Gareth Southgate.
Alexander-Arnold has never managed to hold down a permanent starting spot under Southgate and, amid a tricky start to the current campaign, hasn’t even represented his country since the 1-0 defeat to Hungary back in June.
In the Three Lions’ five games since then, Alexander-Arnold has been an unused substitute twice but has not even made the matchday squad on three occasions.
Speaking to Gary Neville on The Overlap, Van Dijk acknowledged the competition for the right-back spot but questioned how Southgate could leave Alexander-Arnold out completely.
“I was surprised to see Trent Alexander-Arnold not starting for England,” the Dutchman said of his Liverpool teammate.
“England are very lucky to have many talented right-backs, maybe everyone grew up wanting to be the next Gary Neville!
“They have Reece James and Kyle Walker, who are outstanding, but Trent should at the very least be in the squad. They play five at the back, which is a different role for him, but with his quality – if you give him the confidence he needs, he can be so valuable for England.”
Alexander-Arnold wasn’t the only Liverpool man to be backed by Van Dijk as fellow centre-back Joe Gomez was also tipped to earn a spot in Southgate’s final World Cup squad.
“I think England have so much quality, and some unbelievable players in Phil Foden, Marcus Rashford, Jude Bellingham,” Van Dijk added.
“Even Joe Gomez should go in my opinion – I try to help him play better. He was outstanding against Manchester City.
“He can also play in a back-five, on the left, in the centre or on the right. But in general I think England has some fantastic players.”
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