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2 weeks ago
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Tottenham Hotspur midfielder James Maddison has come under fire for his decision to leave the England camp following Gareth Southgate’s exclusion of him from the final 26-man squad for Euro 2024.
Maddison was initially named in Southgate’s 33-man provisional squad but did not make the final cut.
He even participated in the preparation phase and played in the friendly match against Bosnia. However, upon learning of his exclusion from the final squad, Maddison opted to leave the camp before the subsequent friendly match against Iceland.
Former Manchester United legend Gary Neville has been particularly vocal about his disapproval of Maddison’s early departure.
Speaking on The Overlap with Wayne Rooney, Neville described Maddison’s decision as unprofessional and disrespectful to his teammates.
He said:
“Why did he leave early? I would have stayed there. The reason I would have stayed would probably have been one, there is an element of duty; ultimately you are in it together, and I always have this feeling in football that if you are left out, you should still support the team.
“And I’m not having a go at Maddison, and different players deal with it in different ways. But the reason I would have stayed is I used to get really p****d off as a player if someone went mad that they were left out because what you are saying is the guy that was picked in front of you isn’t good enough; you think you are better than him.
“You have a duty to be professional. The reason I would have stayed secondly is, let’s say Foden got injured somehow in that game. I would have wanted to make sure – I think Gareth would have thought I’m going to keep the guy who stayed, I’m not going to pick the guy who has gone home.”
James Maddison was left out of the final 26 man squad
England’s first match in Euro 2024 is against Serbia on Sunday, June 16th, with the kick-off at 8pm BST.
The team is considered one of the favourites to advance far in the tournament. Their initial group includes Slovenia, Serbia, and Denmark.
As the tournament approaches, the focus will remain on how Southgate’s selected squad performs.
