Conor Gallagher’s England omission is a big West Brom snub
Conor Gallagher will surely be seething at his England U21 snub after the West Brom fan favourite was left on the bench v Switzerland on Thursday.
The Chelsea loanee played an integral role for the young Three Lions in their qualification for the U21 European Championships but he was left kicking his heels as they lost their first group game 1-0.
With the group stages of the tournament moved to the March international break England needed players in form and fighting fit to start on a positive footing.
Gallagher has started Albion’s last seven matches and has helped to inspire Sam Allardyce’s side to a run of just two defeats in this period, a sharp contrast to their form over the course of the season that sees them sit 10 points away from safety.
Despite this form he was left out of the starting XI v Switzerland for Everton’s Tom Davies and Norwich City’s Oliver Skipp.
Furthermore, he was not even called upon from the bench.
At West Brom News we think this is a great injustice and it shows just how little regard they have for our club.
Granted, Skipp has had a terrific season in the Championship on loan from Tottenham Hotspur and with his loan club top of the league and unbeaten in 10 games it is hard to make an argument against his inclusion.
But Davies has had an indifferent season at Everton and he missed two games at the start of March through injury before returning to the side for two losses v Chelsea and Burnley.
He was then dropped against Manchester City in their FA Cup clash.
Everton have failed to win six of their last seven games [in 90 minutes] with Davies in the side while they secured a victory at The Hawthorns on March 4 in his absence.
According to Wyscout Gallagher outperforms him in many areas in the Premier League this season, including dribbles per 90 [3.13 v 2.16], recoveries per 90 [6.53 v 6.03] and defensive duel success [55.8% v 50%].
Surely Davies has only been included as a result of Everton’s stature and Premier League standing of eighth.
It has been a dismal showing by Albion this season but Gallagher has been one of the rare bright sparks of a tumultuous campaign at The Hawthorns.
That is why we feel so strongly about this snub – for all the good work he has done he has still been overlooked.
We think he deserves a starting spot and after a shocking start for England that may well come in their next fixture v Portugal on March 28.
In other West Brom news, our Super Fans react to Kieran Gibbs’ MLS exit.
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