Manchester United and Liverpool stars sneak into England’s Euro 2016 squad – Twitter reacts

Tue 31 May 2016 18:30, UK

As soon as Roy Hodgson had named his provisional 26-man squad for England’s Euro 2016 campaign – from which three names had to be scrubbed off for it to be eligible for the tournament – the majority of the focus had been directed towards who would fill the striking berth.

Daniel Sturridge; after enduring another injury-hit campaign, had nonetheless finished the season as Liverpool’s top scorer, while Marcus Rashford was Manchester United’s chief break-out star. In a straight fight for the fourth striker’s spot, it was in fact both who would be taken to France.

It has been a season of impressing on his debuts for Marcus Rashford, with the youngster from Manchester bagging a brace on his first appearance in the Europa League and the Premier League, before hitting the back of the net only a matter of seconds into his international bow. He is now the youngest Englishman to score on his debut in this particular arena, certainly drawing Roy Hodgson’s attentions. Eight goals in 18 United appearances demonstrate that he certainly knows where the back of the net is.

Although his displays for the Anfield club were of a stop-start manner, Daniel Sturridge still managed 13 goals in 25 matches – a return of better than one in every two games. Having performed for England before and with greater experience at the top level, this may well have played a part in Roy Hodgson’s thinking and while he may not be a first-choice starter, he could be a prime option to turn to from the bench.

In order for the pair of Marcus Rashford and Daniel Sturridge to both make it onto the plane, there of course had to be others who were sacrificed in their place. The unlucky duo were Danny Drinkwater of Leicester City and Andros Townsend of Newcastle United, both of whom had been in a rich vein of form to even make it into Roy Hodgson’s consideration.

The final 23 names give the squad a very attacking flavour, and we await to see just how this plays out in the summer. Will Hodgson’s gamble on the fitness of Sturridge, Henderson and Wilshere pay off, or will it be another tournament where bringing half-fit players along has a clear detriment to the potential progression?

Here is how Twitter reacted to the news of the squad announcement:

Bar the good wishes for the youngster Marcus Rashford, most were incredulous at the pair’s inclusion over some others who missed out:

So only players from 'big' clubs get in the . Even if you've been injured. Insult to Drinkwater &
— Paul Hawkins (@paulejhawkins)

Match fitness of Wilshere, Henderson & Sturridge is a concern. 1? yes. 2? Maybe. All 3? Hmm! History tells us such gambles invariably fail.
— Gary Lineker 💙 (@GaryLineker)

Danny Drinkwater, Jermaine Defoe and Andros Townsend all should have been selected. Hodgson making easy, but wrong, choices.
— Lineal Conker Champion of the World (@NUFC_OurClub)

No Drinkwater, no Townsend, but Sturridge makes the cut for England – not sure how Roy justifies that
— Nick Morrison (@nj_morrison)

Drinkwater – Wins league. Plays nearly every game.
Sturridge – 8 months in hospital.
Wilshere – 1 start all season.
— Footy Humour (@FootyHumour)

Wilshere plays 2 games all season. Drinkwater is best midfield in the Prem & wins the league and he's not on the plane??
— Jonathan Entwistle (@jonaent)

http://twitter.com/topsingh61/status/737644480845643776

Townsend & Drinkwater dropped. Should've been Wilshere & Sturridge imo.
— James Drakeford (@JDrakefordMedia)

Some offered an attempted explanation:

Absolutely crazy that Marcus Rashford has made it into England's 23-man squad for the Euros. What a season he's had. Good luck to him.
— Liam Canning (@LiamPaulCanning)

The players he picked showed form for England while Drinkwater did for his club – and that's often been Roy's philosophy.
— John Cross (@johncrossmirror)

he obviously couldn't decide out of rashford or sturridge so he had to scrap a midfielder and he was never going to drop Wilshire
— Mark Dinsdale (@markdinsdale91)

The natural and proven quality of some of the players in question was the dominant aspect for some:

The reason 's in over Drinkwater is that a fit Wilshere's a better player. End.
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan)

well wilshere and Sturridge are our 2 most talented players
— Alex (@AIexBarbaro)

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Manchester United and Liverpool stars sneak into England’s Euro 2016 squad – Twitter reacts