Alan Shearer has suggested that Aston Villa's Morgan Rogers could be handed a starting spot on the right wing for England in their World Cup semi-final against Argentina, should Bukayo Saka fail to prove his fitness. The former England captain's comments come after Noni Madueke produced a disappointing performance in the quarter-final victory over Norway.
Madueke's struggles open door for Rogers
England manager Thomas Tuchel faces several selection dilemmas ahead of Wednesday's clash, with right-back and both wing positions causing headaches throughout the tournament. Anthony Gordon has secured the left-wing berth after finding form, but the right side remains problematic. Saka has not looked fully fit and was an unused starter against Norway, replacing Madueke at half-time after a poor first half from the former Chelsea winger.
Speaking to Betfair, Shearer said: 'I was surprised Saka didn’t start against Norway, but quite clearly, he can’t be 100 per cent fit. Because if he was, then he’d be starting. Madueke didn’t offer enough for us in that first half, and I wasn’t surprised when the manager took him off and brought Saka on. So, if Saka’s fit, and we don’t know that, if he’s fit, my guess is he will start.'
Shearer proposed his preferred lineup: 'My team to play against Argentina would be Pickford, James, Stones, Guehi, O’Reilly, Rice, Anderson, Bellingham, Saka, Kane, Gordon.' However, he acknowledged the possibility of Rogers featuring: 'He could probably go Gordon again on the left, but there’s also an option that he may start Rogers on the right if he feels Saka’s not fit enough and Madueke won’t offer enough. He could go with Gordon, Bellingham, and Rogers. And that’s another option that he’s got in there.'
Winger statistics highlight Madueke's lack of impact
Madueke is the only one of England's four natural wingers yet to register a goal or assist at the tournament, despite playing more minutes than Saka and Marcus Rashford. Gordon and Saka have each provided three assists, while Rashford is the only player outside Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham to score a goal for England this summer.
Messi threat and Argentina analysis
England's opponents Argentina are led by Lionel Messi, who has scored eight goals in the tournament, sharing the Golden Boot lead with Kylian Mbappe. Shearer warned against focusing solely on the 39-year-old: 'I don’t think you can say anyone’s lucky to get to a semi-final. I think what we can’t underestimate is their power and their will to get to where they are. I think that’s the impressive thing.'
He added: 'They’re the reigning champions and they’re in the semi-final for a reason. But I do feel you can get at them and if you do, you can score goals. Obviously, the big question is if you stop Messi, you’ve got a massive chance of stopping Argentina. It’s not as simple that if you just stop Messi then you win the game because when you look at [Julian] Alvarez, the goal that he scored the other day in the quarter-final against Switzerland, they’ve got Fernandez and Mac Allister as well, they’ve got some really talented players so it’s not as simple as that. But if you do stop him, it does often increase your chances of beating them.'
Shearer analysed Messi's style: 'Messi doesn’t do a lot of running and clearly, he’s incredibly clever at picking the space and when to go and when to stop. And he’s got other players that do his running now, but he’s a huge danger when he gets the ball.'
Match details
England face Argentina at 8pm UK time on Wednesday. The other semi-final sees France take on Spain at the same time on Tuesday.
