It’s a travesty that Noble hasn’t had an England chance
Once again, Mark Noble was overlooked by Roy Hodgson as he named his England squad for the Euros.
I find that absolutely ludicrous.
Yes, people will point out that I may be biased and be looking at it through claret and blue tinted spectacles, but the fact of the matter is Noble has been one of the best English midfielders this season and has been consistently delivering over a number of years in the Premier League.
Now I’m not saying Noble should be guaranteed a place in an England starting XI or a seat on the plane to the European Championships. But, my word, he has surely earned a right to at least be given a chance in a game or train under the watchful eye of the England coaches and with a squad. Plenty of other players have been called up after doing far less than Noble.
Do demonstrate that point Roy Hodgson has handed debuts to 34 players. Some of the central midfielders he has awarded with an England chance include: Jake Livermore (1 cap), Ryan Mason (1 cap), Leon Osman (2 caps) and Jonjo Shelvey (6 caps).
Can anyone honestly say, regardless of allegiance, that those select midfielders have done more than Noble has?
Noble has enjoyed his finest season to date, but it’s not like he was exactly atrocious before. He has performed admirably in the Premier League and is always picked as a starter by each manager he has played under.
What has particularly incensed me about the 26-man squad, picked by Hodgson, is the inclusion of Fabian Delph.
The Manchester City midfielder should be nowhere near that squad. I’m a firm believer that, if there were no homegrown quota in the Premier League, Delph would have remained at a sinking Aston Villa. It’s the only reason City went in for him. That aside, however, when you compare his season to Noble’s there is absolutely no contest.
Mark Noble has made 37 Premier League starts this campaign. Delph has made a grand total of eight and has come on as a substitute nine times. In cup competitions, Noble has made a further nine starts whereas Delph has started six and come on as a substitute four times. In tota,l Mark Noble has spent 3205 minutes on a football pitch and Delph has had 872 minutes of playing time.
Surely then, despite Delph’s time spent mostly on the City bench, he must have put in some impressive performances to have made the England squad. Not really.
Delph managed to grab a total of two goals and zero assists in all competitions. Meanwhile, Noble scored seven and notched four assists. On the whole, Noble usually plays deeper than Delph anyway. Whoscored’s final overall ratings for both players read as such: Mark Noble – 7.14, Fabian Delph – 6.62.
It is a mystery to me as to why Delph is in the squad and Noble is not. The squad has to be trimmed down to 23 ahead of the Euros anyway, but why couldn’t Noble have been included in a 27 man squad and been given a chance in the three friendlies that England will play before the team travels to France? Like I said I’m not pushing for him to start, or travel to the tournament, but he has more than earned his right for a fair chance.
If Noble ever does get a call-up it will be well overdue. Or maybe he is just too good for England.