It seems Patrick Bamford’s of forcing his way back into the England squad may not be over just yet.
That’s after Three Lions manager Gareth Southgate name-checked the Leeds United striker as potential cover for Harry Kane moving forward.
Following an excellent 2020/21 campaign in which he scored 17 goals on Leeds’ return to the Premier League, Bamford had become impossible to ignore for England.
That saw him handed his first call-up last September, where he would win his first senior international cap in a win over Andorra.
Since then however, the striker has been blighted by a string of injury issues that have meant he has barely played for Leeds, let alone add to his one England appearance.
But despite that, it seems Southgate has not forgotten about the striker as a potential option for his future England squads.
Speaking about the attacking options he has behind Harry Kane in the wake of his side’s 3-0 friendly win over Ivory Coast on Tuesday, Southgate was quoted by Leeds Live as saying: “We have got Ollie [Watkins] with us this time. Also we need to find out a bit more about our centre forwards and what those options might look like beyond Harry Kane.
“At the moment I’d have to say that’s wide open. Dominic Calvert-Lewin had an excellent couple of games for us in October 2020, but hasn’t established himself this season.
“Patrick Bamford has had a season full of injury. Tammy [Abraham] has had a very good season for goalscoring and it’s disappointing not to have him with us to see.”
This does feel promising from Bamford’s perspective.
Injuries mean the Leeds man has had very few opportunities to impress Southgate and the England selection committee this season.
As a result, the fact that Southgate is still mentioning him here, suggests that Bamford has previously left a positive enough impression on the England set-up to be considered for the future, if he can get back to fitness.
Indeed, the World Cup being pushed back to winter could be good for Bamford. With the striker out for much if not all of the rest of the season, he would have almost no chance to force his way into the squad for a summer tournament.
However, with it being in winter, the first half of next season could give the striker a real chance to earn that spot, especially given he is clearly still on Southgate’s mind.
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https://www.1pagelocal.com/leeds-united-news/leeds-united-man-handed-fresh-international-hope-after-recent-frustrations/
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