England going with youth in final 2014 World Cup match
England is already out of the 2014 World Cup by virtue of back-to-back losses, marking the earliest exit from a World Cup in some 60 years. It also means it’s time for manager Roy Hodgson to figure out the future of the Three Lions.
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On Tuesday, Hodgson is going to get a glimpse of that future on the World Cup stage as he fields a team high on youth and light on experience against upstart group leaders Costa Rica.
According to Hodgson’s announcement, stalwarts like Joe Hart, Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney will all see the bench. In for them are the likes of Ben Foster, Luke Shaw and Adam Lallana.
Hodgson took to the press a day before the matchup, naming a surprise starting XI for the match against Costa Rica. Here is what the starting XI will look like:
England starting-XI vs #CRC: Foster, Jones, Cahill, Smalling, Shaw, Milner, Lampard, Wilshere, Barkley, Lallana, Sturridge. #WorldCup
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) June 23, 2014
This shouldn’t be seen as a roster set to lay down to Los Ticos though, as Hodgson fully expects this group to go out and compete for the win, according to The Guardian in the UK:
“We’ll learn a lot about them in this game. I’ve liked what I’ve seen around the hotel and in training over the last few days, and I’m now giving them the opportunity – not because I can but because I believe this side is a good team on the field and they can go and win the game. I hope they prove me right.”
If this young squad can pull off a result of any kind against Costa Rica, England can at least leave this tournament with some positive feelings about the squad going forward. However, it will be tough for this group to do that, considering Costa Rica already owns wins over Uruguay and Italy in group play.