England star 'faces up to Gareth Southgate' as Jack Grealish omission causes fury in Three Lions camp
Gareth Southgate had to make some tough decisions for his Euros squad
REUTERS
England players were reportedly left 'shocked' after learning of Jack Grealish's omission from the final Euros squad with one senior member even facing up to Gareth Southgate.
The Three Lions boss revealed his final 26-man squad for the European Championships on Thursday.
Seven players in total were axed with the likes of Jarell Quansah and James Trafford unsurprisingly omitted given the more experienced options available to Southgate.
Curtis Jones, James Maddison and Jarrad Branthwaite were also left out with Harry Maguire and Grealish the two big surprises.
Gareth Southgate had to make some tough decisions for his Euros squad
REUTERS
Southgate revealed Maguire's omission was due to concerns surrounding his injury, but the decision to axe Grealish seemingly didn't go down well with the England squad.
According to the Telegraph, the players were left 'shocked' that Grealish didn't make the final cut.
It's claimed that 'one senior player spoke to Southgate' in an attempt to get an explanation for Grealish's omission.
The report added that there was 'no row or confrontation', but some of Grealish's compatriots visited his room to console him after learning of the decision.
The Manchester City star suffered a dip in form last season as he started just 10 Premier League games.
But his impressive cameo off the bench in England's 3-0 win over Bosnia earlier this week was a sign of what he could provide for Southgate in Germany.
The England boss admitted it was a close call in deciding to axe Grealish and one that could have gone either way.
He said: "All the players took the decisions respectfully and all the players believe they should be in, that’s why they’re all top players with that mindset.
Jack Grealish was one of seven players who didn't make the final squad
REUTERS
"We have some players that have performed extremely well this season and other players have had stronger seasons.
"In the attacking positions we’re blessed with a lot of options and Madders and Jack give us something different.
"They were tough calls, but we back our decisions but recognise we could’ve gone a different route. It was sad to have to deliver that news to them."
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Harry Maguire was also left out due to fitness concerns
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Explaining the decision to leave Maguire out, Southgate added: "The decision on Harry is totally about his physical condition and his recovery from the injury. There is no other reason as he is one of our strongest centre-backs.
"Harry has made some progress, but it's been complicated and we wouldn't have had him in the group stages. There were too many hurdles to get through without being clear where we might get to.
"Knowing we haven't got a clean bill of health across the rest of the backline, we need players who are fit and ready to go from the start."It was a really difficult call, you know how I feel about Harry, what he's done for England and for me as a manager."
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