Top 5 leagues for 23/24 season 

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England will kick off their Euro 2024 campaign against Serbia on Sunday night as one of the favourites to win the tournament. Gareth Southgate led England to the final in 2021 before losing to Italy on home soil at Wembley but many would argue their squad is now stronger. 

Jude Bellingham has emerged as a world-class midfielder at Borussia Dortmund before solidifying that status at Real Madrid last season. Phil Foden has matured into one of the best players in the world while Cole Palmer enjoyed his breakthrough season at Chelsea. Declan Rice has blossomed since moving to Arsenal with Kyle Walker and Trent Alexander-Arnold providing Southgate with two right-back options that would start for almost every other nation. England’s squad is top heavy and their weakness lies in defensive areas with Harry Maguire ruled out and their only left-back, Luke Shaw, hasn’t played since February. But England have a plethora of attacking talent at their disposal as evidenced by the fact that five of the top ten players with the most goal contributions last season across the top five leagues are in Southgate’s squad. 

Five of the most prolific attackers from last season are English 

Southgate has widely been accused of being a conservative manager that has failed to unleash England’s attacking talent despite reaching the World Cup semi-finals and the final of Euro 2021. The 53-year-old has conceded that his tenure will inevitably be over if he fails to lift the trophy this summer and that could conceivably lead to Southgate letting go of the handbrake. As the graphic below illustrates, England have an abundance of attacking talent who are entering the tournament on the back of excellent individual seasons. 

Across the top leagues, including cup competitions, England have five players in the top ten for goals and assists during the 2023/24 season. Harry Kane tops the list after an outstanding maiden campaign at Bayern Munich despite the German giants relinquishing their Bundesliga crown for the first time in a decade. The England captain scored 44 goals in 45 games for Bayern while he also provided 12 assists for his teammates. After Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland, Chelsea sensation Palmer ranked 4th after providing 42 goal contributions last season. The 22-year-old is unlikely to command a starting role for England at the Euros, which further highlights their strength in depth in attacking areas. 

Ollie Watkins won’t be a starter either as he will be Kane’s back-up option but the Aston Villa star enjoyed an outstanding season with 27 goals and 13 assists. Foden was voted Transfermarkt’s Premier League player of the season after his starring role in Manchester City winning their fourth consecutive league title. Foden ranks 8th on the list, two places ahead of Jude Bellingham after the English midfielder contributed 23 goals and 13 assists as Real Madrid won La Liga and the Champions League. All five players have made Southgate’s final 26-man squad and could that array of attacking talent be decisive to England’s ambitions. 

Will Gareth Southgate throw caution to the wind? 

Southgate will deploy his preferred 4-3-3 formation but he faces several selection dilemmas. John Stones’ illness could rule him out the opening game but Stones, Walker and Shaw – when fully fit – are guaranteed starters in defence with Marc Guéhi favourite to play at left centre-back. Rice and Bellingham will start but Southgate faces a challenge to find the right balance in midfield – below is how Ben Littlemore, UK Content Manager at Transfermarkt, would line-up against Serbia.

There’s been clamour for Bellingham to play deeper with Foden deployed as a No.10 but that would potentially leave England’s defence exposed with a huge onus on Rice to screen that back four. It’s been reported that Trent Alexander-Arnold will start in midfield but that the Liverpool star is naturally a right-back and his defensive acumen has been questioned. Bukayo Saka is England’s best option at right-wing with captain Harry Kane leading the line and Foden will likely be used from the left if Alexander-Arnold gets the nod in midfield. It would leave Palmer and Watkins – two of the players in the top ten for goal contributions last season – on the bench as potential impact players.