"Lot of big big names were on the bench" - Germany star praises England squad depth and rates their FIFA World Cup chances 

England are one of the favourites for the World Cup.
England are one of the favourites for the World Cup.

Germany defender Antonio Rudiger believes England's incredible squad depth could be beneficial for them during the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

Germany recently faced England in the UEFA Nations League in Munich with the game ending 1-1. Harry Kane's late penalty canceled out Jonas Hofmann's opener in the second-half.

Rudiger stated that England have such a wide pool of players to choose from that they are able to leave out the likes of Jadon Sancho and still be competitive. The newly-signed Real Madrid defender was quoted as saying the following (via The Mirror):

"The England squad has great quality. It's like Saka comes out, Grealish comes in. I saw a lot of big, big names were on the bench. England have a lot to be optimistic about for the future.
"I think you people don't need to worry too much. The English players are definitely getting better. You have to think about it like this, that players like Rashford and Sancho didn't even make the squad."

He added:

"That tells you that you have a lot of depth in the English squad and you have big, big players like Harry Kane, Sterling and Grealish - big names, big players."

Rudiger believes that players like Jack Grealish will make England a dangerous preposition during the FIFA World Cup later this year. He said:

"I think Grealish gave the team a real impact - because he came on and he gave good one v ones and everything. He is a very dangerous player and those sort of players are going to win you games."

According to The Mirror, England are one of the favorites for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The Three Lions come into the tournament on the back of reaching the Euro 2020 final.

Gareth Southgate's side, however, did lose to Italy in the final at Wembley Stadium last summer.


England have a tricky group at the FIFA World Cup

England will have to navigate a tricky group during the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The 1966 champions have been drawn alongside Wales, Iran and the United States of America (USA).

Wales and the USA could be challenging for England. The Three Lions secured a 1-1 draw against the USA the last time they were drawn against one another at the FIFA World Cup back in 2010.

Wales, on the other hand, will be motivated to do well at this year's tournament. The team led by Gareth Bale have reached their first FIFA World Cup since 1958.

England will begin their World Cup campaign against Iran on November 21 at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar.

They then face the United States four days later before rounding out their group phase with a game against Wales on November 29.

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Edited by Arjun Panchadar