ENGLAND manager Gareth Southgate insisted all of his goalkeepers “have slightly different attributes” but refused to hint whether we would see any rotation in his net. Saints stopper Fraser Forster received a late call-up last week to bring him back into the Three Lions squad for the first time in nearly six years. Asked if it is more difficult to rotate your goalkeeper than the rest of the XI,
Gareth Southgate responded: “Well, it’s no different to any other position really, because the profiles of the players do alter. If we start with Harry Kane as a centre-forward he has certain attributes of coming to link the game, coming short to feet. If we play Ollie (Watkins), he is a player that is better running in behind defences and our players have to recognise those differences. It’s the same with all the goalkeepers, they all have slightly different attributes that the more you know about your teammates will help you to have an understanding. The profile of the goalkeeper does change certain aspects of how you would like to play, but that is really the same on every position on the pitch.”
Forster, who has played the last 12 Premier League matches for manager Ralph Hasenhuttl, had a stroke of fortune to get back into the England reckoning. Both Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsdale and West Brom’s Sam Johnstone withdrew from the squad, to open up a place for the former Celtic giant. Southgate could opt to give both Pope and Forster 45 minutes versus the African nation tomorrow, or allow Pickford to retain the shirt altogether.
