Southgate's switch-up: Phil Foden set to START for England tonight

Southgate’s switch-up: Phil Foden set to START for England tonight with Marcus Rashford – and Jude Bellingham will KEEP his place in midfield with Jordan Henderson and Declan Rice

  • Phil Foden was left on the bench in the draw against the USA last Friday
  • He is set to start for England along with Marcus Rashford in Wales clash
  • Kyle Walker and Jordan Henderson are in line to play, as Sportsmail revealed
  • Raheem Sterling, Mason Mount and Bukayo Saka could all be rotated for game
  • WORLD CUP CONFIDENTIAL: It’s time for Foden to be unleashed, says Richards
  • Follow Sportsmail’s live blog throughout the day for all the latest from Qatar
  • Click here for the latest World Cup 2022 news, fixtures, live action and results

Phil Foden and Marcus Rashford are in line to start in England’s final World Cup group game against Wales tonight.

As reported by Sportsmail last night, Kyle Walker and Jordan Henderson are also set to play as Gareth Southgate prepares to stick with a back-four for the clash here in Doha.

Jude Bellingham is expected to keep his place in midfield alongside Henderson and Declan Rice.

There have been plenty of calls for Phil Foden to be included in the starting line-up

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However, Raheem Sterling, Mason Mount and Bukayo Saka could all be rotated for the game with Foden and Rashford primed for their first starts of the tournament.

Behind the scenes, Southgate has made clear to his players that any omissions from the starting XI should be viewed as rotation rather than anything more concrete.

The England staff have told their players that they intend to use the depths of the squad to combat the quick turnaround in matches and the stifling conditions here in Qatar.

Southgate does not want his players to be downhearted if they are not named in the starting XI or lose their place and has made this point to his players.


Gareth Southgate (left) will shuffle the pack for England’s final group game with Rashford (right) set to be given a starting berth against Wales

Kieran Trippier could also be rested, with Walker set to play at right-back alongside Harry Maguire, John Stones and Luke Shaw.

England are looking to finish off the group campaign in style and will qualify with a win, draw or defeat by fewer than four goals. 

They are likely to play either Senegal or Ecuador in the last-16, providing Qatar don’t spring a surprise by beating Holland today.

Southgate will hope for a performance against Wales to carry momentum into the knockout stages.  

Raheem Sterling (left), Mason Mount (second from left) and Bukayo Saka (right) could all be rotated having started the opening two games for England 




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