Alan Shearer believes Morgan Rogers could start for England on the right wing against Argentina in the World Cup semi-final on Wednesday, if Bukayo Saka is not fully fit, following Noni Madueke's underwhelming display against Norway.
Madueke's performance raises concerns
The Three Lions are preparing to face Argentina in the semi-finals, and manager Thomas Tuchel faces several selection dilemmas. Right-back and both wings have been persistent headaches during the tournament, while managing Declan Rice's fitness is also a concern. Anthony Gordon has emerged as the likely starter on the left flank, but the right wing remains problematic.
Saka has not looked fully fit throughout the tournament and did not start the quarter-final win over Norway. He replaced Madueke at half-time after a poor first-half performance from the former Chelsea winger. Madueke is the only one of England's four natural wingers not to have provided a goal or an assist in the tournament, despite playing more minutes than Saka and Marcus Rashford. Gordon and Saka have each laid on three assists, while Rashford is the only player outside Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham to have scored a goal.
Shearer's preferred lineup and Rogers option
“I was surprised Saka didn’t start against Norway, but quite clearly, he can’t be 100 per cent fit,” Shearer told Betfair. “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's preferred team to face Argentina is: Pickford; James, Stones, Guehi, O'Reilly; Rice, Anderson, Bellingham; Saka, Kane, Gordon. However, he acknowledged an alternative: “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.”
Argentina's threat beyond Messi
Argentina will be heavily focused on Lionel Messi, who has scored eight goals this summer, sharing the lead in the Golden Boot race with Kylian Mbappe. Shearer warned that England cannot underestimate the reigning champions. “I don’t think you can say anyone’s lucky to get to a semi-final,” said the Newcastle legend. “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. 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.”
Shearer added that stopping Messi alone is not enough: “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. 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.”
England face Argentina at 8pm UK time on Wednesday, with France playing Spain in the first semi-final on Tuesday.
