Jose Mourinho wants Jack Grealish and Phil Foden but Gareth Southgate not expected to follow advice for England’s Euro 2020 opener against Croatia with Raheem Sterling set to start – predicted line-up - FBS247

Jose Mourinho revealing his England XI on talkSPORT appeared to get everyone talking, even the England players themselves, as he lavished praise on a number of the Three Lions’ young stars.

However, fans have been warned not to expect ‘fantasy football’ from Gareth Southgate, by one of his own backroom staff, and it appears the England side that walks out for their Euro 2020 opener against Croatia on Sunday could look quite different.

Mourinho offered his verdict on how England should line-up for their Euro opener, and even triggered reaction from a number of Three Lions players

Mourinho – making his competitive studio debut as a talkSPORT pundit for the Euros – was initially hesitant to name the team he would pick, admitting it was not his place to comment or overstep the mark on Southgate’s job.

Southgate is facing an almost impossible job as the clock ticks down until their first game – which is LIVE on talkSPORT – but after some encouragement the Special One soon listed the 11 players he would pick, and it was heavy on young attacking talent.

But it appears Southgate is sticking to a familiar formula.

Mourinho described Jack Grealish as ‘untouchable’ – even comparing him to Luis Figo – and also named Phil Foden, but it is now expected at least one of those players, if not both, will miss out.

It’s expected Grealish will be benched for England’s Euro 2020 opener despite his impressive form

The Daily Mail reports that Raheem Sterling is set to start alongside Harry Kane and Mason Mount.

That leaves just one more spot for a forward, which would mean two of Foden, Grealish and Marcus Rashford start on the bench, and according to The Athletic, it’s Foden who gets the nod.

Mourinho also chose to leave two of his former Manchester United players out of his XI, Luke Shaw and Rashford, who he said is ‘completely lost’ unless he plays on the left wing, which is where he says Grealish should be a sure starter.

But it is suggested the City wonderkid could be given the nod by Southgate as he goes for extra creativity.

Sterling seems set to start in England’s Euro 2020 opener against Croatia at the expense of Rashford

The biggest topic of debate ahead of the game has been England’s defensive line, with claims earlier this week Southgate is set to pick FOUR full-backs across a back-five, featuring Luke Shaw on the left side of a three.

However, it is now expected Southgate will stick with the back-four he operated in two warm-up friendlies against Austria and Romania.

Fans will likely be particularly disappointed to see Grealish left out after his impressive performances in the build-up, but assistant manager Steve Holland has warned fans not to expect ‘fantasy football’ from the Three Lions this summer.

And he also revealed he and Southgate know the team and formation for Sunday’s clash.

Southgate has a bit of a selection headache with so much attacking quality in his squad

“I would say only this,” said the England coach. “Going back to the World Cup in 2018, for example, Argentina, they had (Paulo) Dybala, (Angel) Di Maria, (Sergio) Aguero, (Gonzalo) Higuain, Lionel Messi.

“Mauro Icardi didn’t make the squad. So you have an amazing array of talent, but they went out in the round of 16.

“This is not fantasy football. It is nice to play that game, but you can’t just throw four or five players together. What that team showed is that if you try to cram too many in you don’t even get the best of the individuals that if you play with fewer, they can provide.”

LATEST TEAM NEWS

Dean Henderson was also picked by Mourinho as his No.1 for the tournament, but the Manchester United goalkeeper sat out of training on Saturday morning, on the eve of England’s opener.

talkSPORT understands he only missed the training session as a precaution and is not a doubt for the game, but Jordan Pickford is still expected to start between the sticks.

“It’s only a minor problem he’s got,” revealed talkSPORT’s England correspondent Faye Curruthers.

There were also fears from reporters at St George’s Park over the fitness of John Stones, the only fully fit experienced centre-back in the squad, after the Three Lions squad emerged on the training pitch without him.

But, it turns out he was just late for the session, as he sauntered out onto the field after his teammates. The Man City star is expected to start at Wembley.

And there was possible good news on Harry Maguire’s fitness, as Curruthers noted the United captain was ‘moving around quite comfortably’ ahead of the game.

Whether he will be given a starting place remains unclear, but it has been widely expected he will sit out England’s first game.

Maguire has returned to England training but he’s unlikely to start against Croatia

PREDICTED LINE-UP

With Holland hinting at a conservative selection, and an emphasis on not conceding, we are expecting a familiar England team against Croatia.

With Maguire still working his way back to 100 per cent fitness, a centre-back pairing of John Stones and Tyrone Mings is likely, with Kyle Walker at right-back and Luke Shaw battling it out with Ben Chilwell for the left-back spot, but Kieran Trippier is an option too.

Meanwhile, while Jurgen Klopp has insisted Jordan Henderson is fully fit and he returned to action in England’s final warm-up against Romania, talkSPORT pundit Tony Cascarino insists it would be unwise to start the Liverpool captain against Croatia.

“I wouldn’t want to be risking Henderson in midfield,” said the Weekend Breakfast host on Saturday.

“Because Croatia’s midfield is incredibly strong. Get that balance right, don’t make any mistakes in your line-up, because they will punish you.

“If you get things wrong, Croatia have got a hell of an experienced team, so if you get anything not quite tactically right, or the players you pick are not quite on their game, you will pay a price.

“This is a very savvy and streetwise team that has been around for a long time and, even if a few of their key players are on the wrong side of 30, they’re still a dangerous team.”

Is this the England team to take on Croatia?

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