‘Ridiculous’: bbc Sports pundit absolutely shocked by decision made on West Ham star

Ridiculous’: Paul Merson L0 shocked by decision made on West Ham star

Paul Merson has derided the “ridiculous” decision not to include West Ham United star James Ward-Prowse op in the England squad.

The Hammers summer signing has hit the ground running at the London Stadium, helping David Moyes’ side into the formative top four.

Ward-Prowse has registered one goal and three assists from his first three Premier League games with West Ham.

In addition, the 28-year-old also grabbed an assist in his one game with Southampton this term.

Despite such an amazing start to the season, Gareth Southgate hasn’t included Ward-Prowse in his squad.

The current England manager has instead included the likes of Kalvin Phillips and Jordan Henderson.

Phillips is out of favour at Manchester City, while Henderson now plays his club football in Saudi Arabia.

Merson, writing on Sky Sports, could barely believe the decision Southgate has made.

“When the squad came out, Trent Alexander-Arnold was one of the midfielders. If you’re James Ward-Prowse, you’re thinking: ‘I’m never playing for England’,” he wrote.

“You’ve got someone [Henderson] who’s playing in the Saudi league in front of 6,000 people every week and then you’ve got Ward-Prowse, who’s playing very well for West Ham.

“He’s been one of the game changers but he doesn’t get a look in. It’s ridiculous.”

Our view

England squad selection announcements will rarely be met with anything approaching universal approval.

However, it does seem baffling that West Ham’s new star midfielder hasn’t made the cut.

This is particularly baffling when you’ve got one player who’s a bench-warmer at Manchester City and another who’s in the twilight of his career and playing in the Saudi league.

All I can say is I certainly do hope to be proven wrong in the current international break and, further on, at Euro 2024 and beyond.