5 England players who should be given a chance at the World Cup

#2 – Luke Shaw

Back in favour at Manchester United, could Luke Shaw regain his England spot?

When he first broke through at Southampton prior to the 2014 World Cup, it was expected that Luke Shaw would be the future first-choice left-back for England. But his move to Manchester United hasn’t exactly worked out – a broken leg at the start of 2015/16 sidelined him and then he fell out of favour with Jose Mourinho. This paved the way for both Danny Rose and Ryan Bertrand to supplant him in the England pecking stakes, too.

Suddenly though, Shaw seems back in favour with Mourinho – he’s been starting the majority of United’s recent games, and reports have even suggested that United have given up tracking Juventus left-back Alex Sandro because the Portuguese boss suddenly believes in Shaw so much. It’s a far cry from how he was criticised over his weight and attitude by Mourinho before.

So could he get back into the England reckoning? I think he ought to. He’s playing more often than Rose – who’s suffered all season with a knee injury – right now and I’d argue he has more to offer overall if he’s fit, too. He’s not quite as quick as Rose but his delivery on the ball is better and he offers more of an attacking outlet than his other rival Bertrand. Only two left-backs are likely to go to the World Cup, and judging on current form, Shaw should be one of them.