James Ward Prowse
Posted in2020-2021-Season Daily News

#PLStories- #JamesWardProwse still has Euro 2020 chance after #TrentAlexanderArnold forced to pull out of England squad #SAINTSFC

June 5, 2021
SAINTS skipper James Ward-Prowse still has a chance for a late England Euro 2020 call-up after Trent Alexander-Arnold was ruled out of the tournament. The Liverpool defender suffered a thigh injury in Wednesday’s friendly win over Austria. Alexander-Arnold limped off in the closing stages of the 1-0 victory, with Three Lions boss Gareth Southgate offering a grim prognosis immediately after the game. His fears were realised when scans revealed the extent of Alexander-Arnold’s injury – with the Football Association confirming his withdrawal on Thursday. “Trent Alexander-Arnold has been ruled out of UEFA EURO 2020,” a statement said. “The Liverpool player sustained a thigh injury in the closing stages of Wednesday’s 1-0 win against Austria in Middlesbrough. “A scan on Thursday confirmed the 22-year-old will be unable to play in the forthcoming tournament so he has withdrawn from the England squad to return to his club for rehabilitation. “Gareth Southgate will not confirm a replacement until after Sunday’s return to the Riverside Stadium for the warm-up fixture against Romania.” Ward-Prowse is now one of the five outfield players on standby waiting to discover if they will be selected to replace Alexander-Arnold in the squad. Defenders Ben White and Ben Godfrey, who both made their debuts off the bench against Austria, as well as Jesse Lingard and Ollie Watkins are the others who Southgate can call upon. Saints skipper Ward-Prowse and the other players in contention to make the squad could still feature in Sunday’s warm-up fixture against Romania. “All the (omitted) players are going to stay with us through to the end of Sunday’s game anyway,” Southgate said. “Obviously we’ll make an assessment on the whole squad once we’ve got through that game. “I’m very conscious we’ve got another 90 minutes to get through and that alone is a bit of a challenge for us, really.” England face Croatia in Group D of the tournament on Sunday, June 13. They are then set to take on Scotland on Friday, June 18 and Czech Republic on June 22. All three of their group fixtures are at Wembley.
Ben White Leeds
Posted in2020-2021-Season Daily News

#PLStories- #GarethSouthgate reveals Brighton’s #BenWhite was always aware he was not heading to Euros #BHAFC

June 2, 2021
England boss Gareth Southgate has revealed that Brighton defender Ben White knew he was coming in for the experience and the friendlies rather than the Euros. The 23-year-old defender was called up as part of Southgate's 33-man provisional squad last week. But he was one of the seven players to miss out on the chance to go to the Euros with England. However, Southgate revealed that the uncapped trio of White, Everton's Ben Godfrey and Sheffield United's Aaron Ramsdale knew they were coming in for the experience. He said: “You never want to give bad news. “It is lovely to give people debuts and bring people into the squad for the first time but it is much harder to deliver bad news. “This time, there were three boys who knew they were coming in for the experience of training with us and for these two matches, and who knows what might happen. "But they have trained really well.”  
James Ward Prowse
Posted in2020-2021-Season Daily News

#PLStories- #GarethSouthgate explains why #JamesWardProwse is left out of England Euro 2020 squad #SAINTSFC

June 2, 2021
ENGLAND manager Gareth Southgate admitted “you never want to give bad news” after James Ward-Prowse was cut from his Euro 2020 squad. The Saints skipper was one of seven names to be trimmed down from the original 33-man group, as the Three Lions finalised their final 26-man party for this summer’s tournament. Ward-Prowse had been regarded as an important figure in the Three Lions setup, and a regular in recent squads. But reports surfaced on Sunday that the 26-year-old would not make the cut for the final squad, set to compete in this summer’s tournament. His fate was confirmed as England’s final squad was finalised hours before UEFA’s deadline for submissions. Mason Greenwood withdrew from selection due to injury, while the likes of Aaron Ramsdale, Ben Godfrey, Ben White, Jesse Lingard and Ollie Watkins were also not selected. Ward-Prowse could however still feature in England’s friendly with Austria at Middlesbrough tomorrow night, as well as Sunday’s showdown against Romania. Asked how tough it was to leave out the seven men cut from the group, Southgate said: “You never want to give bad news. “Anybody that’s been in a leadership position – it’s lovely to give people debuts, it’s lovely to bring people into the squad for the first time. It’s much harder to deliver difficult news. “With the lads this time, there were three of the boys who really knew they were coming in for the experience of training with us – they are with us for these two matches and who knows what might happen? “They have trained really well and we are really pleased with Ben Godfrey, Ben White and Aaron Ramsdale. They have added a lot to the group. “Mason Greenwood unfortunately had to pull out on Friday. We knew he wasn’t a contender over the past few days. “For me personally, it was very difficult to speak with Jesse (Lingard), who has given so much for England, performed so well for England over a long period of time. James Ward-Prowse who has been our captain with the under-21s and then Ollie Watkins who has had a tremendous season with Aston Villa. “Those three, I gave them the option of going home if they wanted to, but they were all adamant they wanted to stay – they wanted to be part of the group – they know they will be involved in these two matches. “Their commitment has been exemplary and their professionalism has been brilliant. It meant that yesterday (Monday) afternoon, when I had the conversations with those players – although they were disappointed, they knew where they stood. “It’s meant that the atmosphere around the camp has stayed positive and very relaxed.” Ward-Prowse went into the England camp having played every minute in the Premier League for the past two seasons. He also netted his first senior international goal in March, during a 5-0 World Cup Qualifying win over San Marino. Southgate added: “I think every squad is difficult because we have a lot of talented players in this country. “The most difficult thing is to not be able to take players who’ve been with us in previous matches and who are such good professionals. “So, I know what a disappointment that is for them at the moment not to be going to a major championship. “But we still have two friendlies to get to, and there’s been plenty of examples over the years where there have been injuries in those friendlies that have ruled people out. “So, there’s still time for those guys even though they’re not in at this moment in time."
James Ward Prowse
Posted in2020-2021-Season Daily News

#PLStories- #RalphHasenhuttl and #GarethSouthgate heaps praise on #JamesWardProwse as he wins Saints Player of the Season award #SAINTSFC

May 27, 2021
SUPER skipper James Ward-Prowse has been named the Daily Echo Saints Player of the Season for the 2020-21 campaign. The midfielder sealed top spot in the online vote from Echo readers, with 46 per cent in total. He was ahead of Stuart Armstrong (32 per cent) with Kyle Walker-Peters (nine per cent) rounding off the top three. Ward-Prowse was ever-present for Saints in the top flight this season, becoming the only midfielder in the Premier League to feature for the entirety of two campaigns. Of Saints’ players this term, Ward-Prowse made more passes and had more touches of the ball than anyone else. Only Walker-Peters made more tackles than the England midfielder. Across the 38 games, Ward-Prowse scored eight times and provided seven assists. In winning the award, he follows in the footsteps of recent winners, Oriol Romeu, Alex McCarthy and Nathan Redmond. Mick Channon was the first recipient of the prize in 1974. The award seals an impressive double for the 26-year-old, who also last week scooped the club’s supporters’ player of the season accolade. Ward-Prowse was on Tuesday named in Gareth Southgate’s provisional 33-man England squad ahead of this summer’s European Championships. Speaking about the midfielder while announcing the squad, Three Lions manager Southgate said: “I've worked with James since my very first game in the under-21s and it has been amazing to see his life progress, really. "He is a father, he gets married soon and it is lovely to watch players go through that journey in their life. "To see him go from being a young player under Mauricio (Pochettino) to a great captain under Ralph (Hasenhuttl), it's fantastic." He added: "He is a fantastic professional. That is why he has been able to hammer those games out. "There is always an element of luck in having an injury-free run like that but you always know with James that he will do everything he can to get himself in the best condition that he can be in, to recover in the best possible way and to eat the right things.” Ward Prowse has made 322 senior appearances for Saints, having come through the club’s youth academy, joining at the age of eight. Speaking about the talismanic midfielder, Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl said: “It’s not surprising for me, a player who played every minute this season is unbelievable. “His physicality and his performances are outstanding. That’s our captain on the pitch and he is on the way that he is a very important player for this club for the long term, I think.”
Danny ings Southampton
Posted in2020-2021-Season Daily News

#PLStories- #GarethSouthgate gives reasons for leaving #DannyIngs out of England squad #SAINTSFC

May 26, 2021
ENGLAND boss Gareth Southgate admitted Saints frontman Danny Ings had been “unfortunate” not to be selected in his Euro 2020 provisional squad. Ings forced his way back into the England fold this season, ending a five-year absence from the senior side to feature in September’s Nations League victory over Iceland in Reykjavik. The former Liverpool frontman also scored his first England goal during a 3-0 win over Wales at Wembley back in October. But Ings missed out on March’s internationals against San Marino, Albania and Poland – with Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins called up for the first time. And asked about Ings’s omission this time round, Southgate insisted consistency was key in his selection. “The basis of this squad is the squad that we picked in March,” said the England boss. “There are other players who have come in but we were very pleased with the forwards in March. "That is unfortunate that Danny has missed out but we have also left out Patrick Bamford who has had had a very good season. "We did not see a reason to change those positions from those qualifiers in March." Ings scored 14 goals in 35 appearances for club and country during the 2020-21 season.
Ben White Leeds
Posted in2020-2021-Season Daily News

#PLStories- #GarethSouthgate explains call up of #BenWhite for England #LUFC

May 26, 2021
Gareth Southgate has explained why Ben White has made his provisional squad for the Euros. The England boss has hinted age and versatility hold the key both for the Albion man and Everton’s Ben Godfrey, who has also been included. Both players are 23. Southgate said: “They are both exciting young defenders, there are others we have been looking at that we really like. “These two are flexible, they play in different roles, this is a great opportunity to get to them a bit better for them to work with the team. BACKGROUND: BEN WHITE'S JOURNEY TO ENGLAND CALL REACTION: BEN WHITE ON HIS ENGLAND CALL “There is no way of knowing how long they will be with us at this stage but it should be a fantastic experience for them.” White has operated on the right of a back three, at right-back and in midfield for Albion this season.
Lewis Dunk Brighton
Posted in2020-2021-Season Daily News

#PLStories- #GarethSouthgate explains why he picked #BenWhite over #LewisDunk #BHAFC

May 26, 2021
England boss Gareth Southgate has explained his reasons for selecting Albion defender Ben White over his skipper and teammate Lewis Dunk. The 23-year-old received his first call-up as part of Southgate’s 33-man provisional squad ahead of the more experienced option of Dunk, who has already been capped by England. However, his omission from the squad came as a surprise to some pundits and fans including former England defender and manager Stuart Pearce. Read More: Stuart Pearce is surprised by Lewis Dunk’s omission from England squad But Southgate has explained that age played a part in his decision to pick White instead of Dunk. He said: “It’s less that we see him (Ben White) ahead of Lewis (Dunk), but Ben is a younger player and there is a bit of an investment for the future there. “We know Lewis has had a very good season with Brighton and I know Graham (Potter) is delighted with what he has done for them. “With Ben we have tracked him since he has been on loan at Leeds we have seen him play in midfield, we have seen him play across the backline, he is comfortable with the ball and he has got pace. “So we know it is still early with centre backs like Ben White, Ben Godfrey, Fikayo (Tomori). Centre backs usually mature much later. “But these guys are getting good experience at a young age in some of the top leagues in the world, they are working with good coaches at their clubs and we think it is a good opportunity for them to come and work with us.”