Representing your county is the ultimate honour in any sport. Being asked to do so should be the culmination of hard work or in very rare cases, an undeniable natural talent. Nowadays little of either is required for a call up to the England football team. The latest squad begs the question: Is it too easy to get a call up?

Before this is answered an obvious trap needs to be stepped over. Previous generations cannot be compared to the current crop. There is a widely accepted opinion that the pool of talent at Roy Hodgson’s disposal is smaller than years gone by. At the current rate of decline the talent pool will soon become a puddle.

It’s down to this negative trend we have the Home Grown players rule which is constantly under review and the quota could be further increased.

So while it can be agreed the national team has less options than in previous years, the squads from Italia ’90 and France ’98 seeming so far away now, it doesn’t mean collecting a cap should be any easier. Roy Hodgson shouldn’t be taking lucky dips away with him for England games and young professionals shouldn’t be expecting a cap along with their first couple of senior games in the Premier League.

If a young Rooney bursts onto the scene, or another Gascoigne, then they obviously will be hard to overlook but right now England have no players of that ilk. Regardless, new caps are being given away based on nothing more than Premier League starts.

Some of the early appearances within the current squad make sense. Harry Kane performed strongly last season and no one will argue against his four appearances for England, his three goals backing up the case. John Stones is already being touted as a £40m player so his presence in the squad was good for his personal development.

The idea of having former U21s in or around the team is nothing new. But it should be to give them glimpses not a permanent seat on the coach. They should then return to the U21s to continue their growth. It wouldn’t have done Saido Berahino any harm to receive his call up and not play. Hopefully this is the plan for Tottenham’s Dele Alli because after just seven games in the Premier League and only two at U21 level he hasn’t demonstrated anything to suggest he warrants a full cap.

If catching Roy’s eye with the promise of being the future right now isn’t an option then joining a perceived big club is a good path to take. Ideally doing both is best, then you are guaranteed a haul of caps until you leave said big club. The club doesn’t even need to be in the top four.

Liverpool, for example, still guarantees an England call up. Just ask Danny Ings who has been given one or Jonjo Shelvey who after leaving Anfield has had to work twice as hard to get noticed again.

The exception to both of these rules is Jamie Vardy. He is 28 and plays for Leicester City. His form this season shows he deserves his place. His call up came off the back of a strong debut Premier League season. It’s not fair to criticise England for missing out on a player until he’s 28; he had been playing for Fleetwood Town until 2012 so was unproven at a higher level.

Picking form players is the only case that goes against the argument a proven track record should be the only way to get a call up. But if you look at the recent names to get the nod from Hodgson you can hardly fight their case to be in a Premier League XI, the Spurs duo of Ryan Mason and Danny Rose spring to mind.

It’s with little wonder Jack Grealish decided to represent England at senior level. In the past those with dual citizenship had a tough choice, they went for England with a better chance of qualifying for major tournaments at the risk of being passed over for selection, or someone like Ireland safe in the knowledge they’d get plenty of international game time. Grealish played for the Irish national youth teams from the age of 14 to U21 level.

Since making that decision he must have realised the chances of getting an England call up are no smaller than an Irish one.

With only nine English players involved in the last round of Champions League fixtures it’s clear there aren’t many rivals for a cap, if you’re half-decent you’ll play for England.

Roy Hodgson may have lower number to choose from but he shouldn’t make his search for talent remove the prestige associated with an England cap.

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Jurgen Klopp takes his Liverpool side down to East London in the lunchtime kick-off this afternoon on the back of two wins over Sunderland and Leicester as the German looks to get things back on track.

The Reds lead today’s opponents in the league standings by a single point as both teams have suffered inconsistent spells thus far. Klopp had been suffering a rather disappointing spell until the festive period brought him two wins on the trot.

While the Hammers famously recorded a 3-0 win at Anfield earlier this season, a series of injuries have seen options limited for manager Slaven Bilic.

Both teams will be looking to kick off the New Year with a win after coming through their final games of 2015 with victories. The final game at Upton Park played between the two promises to be anything but a drab affair, as the last five games between the two at the venue have wielded 21 goals.

For statistical gems such as that and SO much more, have a read of our SEVEN facts you need to know about West Ham vs Liverpool.

HOME RUNNERS

West Ham are unbeaten in their last seven Premier League home games, winning three and drawing four. In fact, they haven’t suffered disappointment at home since the loss to Bournemouth on August 22nd.

Some imperial form in the last ever season at the Boleyn Ground before the move to the Olympic Stadium.

OLD BOY BACK TO HAUNT?

Hammers striker Andy Carroll spent under two years with Liverpool following his £35m move from Newcastle, though he could never truly convince in the famous Red shirt. Lining up against his former charges today, the 26-year old England international will be looking to break his duck.

The towering Geordie will be aiming to score in consecutive games for the first time in almost a year, following his goal over Southampton.

FINE MARGINS

Though Klopp’s arrival brought an initial wave of excitement across Merseyside, the ‘heavy metal’ style of football imposed by the former Borussia Dortmund coach has not really found its feet just yet, despite the win over Man City.

In fact, the Reds have won five matches by a 1-0 scoreline so far this term, a margin only recorded more by West Bromwich Albion.

HOLDING THEIR NERVE

The home side have conceded the lowest percentage of second half goals in the entirety of the Premier League this season at just 39%.

Slaven Bilic has obviously installed an air of determination and increased concentration to go along with the obvious attacking flair shown at times this term.

TURNING TIDES

While today’s visitors traditionally had the advantage over West Ham, such a hold seems to be breaking. The Hammers have won as many Premier League games over Liverpool during their last three meetings (2) as they had done in the previous 22.

The gap is surely being closed.

LANDMARK LAD

The aforementioned Andy Carroll will be aiming to make his 150th Premier League appearances against Liverpool today, having played 44 of them during a relatively unhappy spell as a Reds player.

If he can shake off hi injuries, he can look forward to many more at just 26-years of age.

BIG MISSERS

Liverpool will be hoping to improve their miserable attacking record shown in the home loss to today’s opponents.

In that game back in early September, they were only able to muster a single shot on target.

An unprecedented first half of the season for Leicester has been remarkable, but you’ll need to be a bit more sensible with your ambitions on FM16.

Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez are highly rated, but its not quite going to be possible to replicate the same run to the top of the table, despite a decent sized budget.

Whilst the attacking options are excellent, the Leicester squad is short in other areas and you will need a similar level of fortune and skill in avoiding injuries.

What you start with…

A budget of nearly £10million just for avoiding relegations seems very generous and should be enough to build a talented squad that can charge for the top half, thanks to the improved ratings of several players.

What’s expected…

Premier League – After the struggles of last season, the board will be happy to just see the club survive the drop again, but it could be worth promising a mid table finish to get that extra cash.

FA Cup – A run to the fifth round would be enough for the board and promising any more in the cup is foolish considering your chances of getting an unplayable draw.

Capital One Cup – Make your league season a success and the Capital One Cup will be an irrelevance to the fans and board.

Three to buy…

Jon Flanagan – The Scouse Cafu still has quality potential on FM, but it should be possible to add him to your squad for a reasonable fee – once his injury clears up. The weakness of the right-backs in the squad should mean that Flanagan walks in ahead of De Laet and Simpson, whilst the additions of Clyne and Moreno at Liverpool mean he will be keen on a move.

Riechedly Bazoer – Bazoer might not be up to starting for Leicester at the start of your save, but the defensive midfield man will be an ideal replacement for Gokhan Inler in the longer term. Bazoer can be developed into a top class centre-back or defensive midfield player and this will perfectly address the biggest weaknesses in the Leicester squad. It might take a significant chunk of your budget, but, if you ever sell the Dutchman on, you will more than make that back.

Andros Townsend – Townsend, as in the real world, finds himself surplus to requirements at Spurs. However, the England international has a game that would suit Leicester’s direct style. His crossing ability, matched with a tendency to shoot from distance and electric pace will fit right in with Mahrez, Vardy and their fellow counter-attacking machines.

Three to sell…

Dean Hammond – Hammond is not much more than a Championship player on FM and he must be moved on pretty quickly as you look to improve in central midfield. Options like Drinkwater and Inler should be your first choice, but any scenario where Hammond was required on a longer-term basis would be a concern.

Andy King – Similarly to Hammond, King doesn’t really have the attributes to play for a side like Leicester in the top flight. The revenue from his sale could get you a far better player to cover in central midfield if you are aiming for the top half.

Danny Simpson – A new right-back is worth targeting with Simpson and De Laet both very much bottom-half quality in the Premiership. Simpson still has the pace to make him a decent option for a lot of sides, but the improvements in Leicester’s squad make him a significant weakness.

Youngsters…

Jeffrey Schlupp – With an ageing squad, Schlupp is one of a few young players who can really push on to make their name in the first team. After excelling towards the end of last season, Schlupp is a useful option in the squad and can operate anywhere down the left. Schlupp’s pace will make him extremely useful in Leicester’s rapid breaking style.

Ben Chilwell – Despite a weak academy, Leicester’s Chilwell can become a high quality first team defender if he is trained and played properly. A loan might be the best move for Chilwell initially, but he can easily step up into the XI within a couple of seasons.

Liam Moore – Moore is on loan at the start of your save, but the young defender is another who will easily be up to first-team standard within a season or two. Ideally, Moore and Chilwell should be making up your defence by the team you reach the end of the 2010s. Moore was crucial in Leicester’s promotion winning campaign and his potential is still high enough to make it worth nurturing this starlet, considering he is only 22.

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As a club, Newcastle United is never far from controversy. Their last game was no different, with owner Mike Ashley offering free jackets from Sports Direct if Newcastle beat West Ham (which they did, 2-1, congrats to the new jacket owners).

However, for a team plagued by inconsistency, are they suddenly on a new Geordie Renaissance? Has Steve McClaren finally got the team performing his way?

This season Newcastle have looked like a side that don’t really know where they stand in the Premier League. For the past few seasons they have been up and down the table, and many fans want the glory days back; the days where managers like Robson and Pardew took them to Europe.

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But after looking dead and buried before December, with only three wins, they have come into January looking a better side.

McClaren has bought in Jonjo Shelvey to boss his midfield and to provide support to Wijnaldum. Wijnaldum looks to be a really great signing for Newcastle, scoring a lot of goals and carrying the team singlehandedly for many periods of this season.

Mitrovic, the striker who bought in to solve the lack of goals at the beginning of the season, ended up getting booked or sent off in his first couple of games. However, more recently he has matured and started to get amongst the goals, as well as starting to be a regular in the first team.

The defence has been performing a lot better, and they have ground out results against some of the tough teams like Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham, as well as only just losing to Arsenal. Does that highlight that this team is on the up?

When you look at the table, Newcastle have pulled themselves out of the bottom three, now only four points off Chelsea. Should results continue to be positive, there is no reason why Newcastle can’t pull themselves up the table and further away from the relegation zone.

WANT MORE? >> Newcastle United transfer news | Latest transfer news

If Newcastle truly want to stay up this season, they need to beat Watford in their next game, as well as get points off West Brom, Everton and Chelsea, which is not going to be easy. They will have to buy wisely, which they have already done with Shelvey, and then get as many points as possible between now and the end of the season.

If they don’t then the drop will be staring them in the face and the task of safety will be a lot harder for Newcastle. It is becoming one of the most intense relegation battles we have had in seasons, with all teams from 10th onwards at risk of slipping up and dropping down to the Championship.

Whether Newcastle will be there come May is another matter. They have proved that they can get results, its whether they can be consistent and steer themselves away from trouble.

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Manchester United are set to receive a triple boost ahead of their clash against Watford on Wednesday, with Anthony Martial, Chris Smalling, and Matteo Darmian all recovering from their respective injuries, talkSPORT reports.

After months of criticism at Old Trafford mostly directed at manager Louis van Gaal, the Red Devils have suddenly turned their form around and are on a three-game winning streak with their latest being a 3-2 triumph over then-title favourites Arsenal.

However, the club are still struggling from a lengthy injury list, with no less than 17 stars out with respective problems.

But ahead of their league match with Watford, Van Gaal has revealed that Martial, Smalling, and Darmian could all be recalled to feature against the Hornets.

“(Marouane) Fellaini and (Antonio) Valencia are the first ones to come back, I think, except of course Martial, Smalling and Darmian,” he said.

“They are coming back and may be ready tomorrow – it depends on how they feel tomorrow.

“But the chance is there that one of these three players (can) already play, but Fellaini shall come in the last step to the process of team training.

“And also Valencia, for the first time today has trained with the group, so they are coming back. (Wayne) Rooney is still in a brace.”

Out of the three, Martial’s return could cause the Dutchman to have a selection headache due to 18-year-old wonderkid Marcus Rashford’s incredible form, with the striker scoring four goals in the last two games.

“First, I think that the media have to let him in peace and rest,” Van Gaal said regarding Rashford.

“When you are in front of his house and that kind of stuff, I don’t think that is beneficial for a boy of 18 years old.

“Give him the time also to be 18 years and we shall guide him also in that way, but he is a very modest guy so I don’t think that shall be the problem

“But of course when you have so much attention of the media, it can go in another way, but I believe that he shall keep his feet on the ground.”

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Whilst Goodison Park was initially filled with a growing sense of expectation and renewed hope for the future before a ball was kicked this season, the 2015/16 campaign has ultimately proven to be a frustrating affair for Everton and the loyal Toffees faithful, who currently see their side languishing in 14th place.

Although the Toffees have an FA Cup semi-final to look forward to, Roberto Martinez’s side has certainly failed to meet expectations this season, with any major signs of improvement coming few and far between.

But as the blue half of Merseyside simply can’t afford to continuously underperform, must Everton now look to part ways with their current manager in  the summer, or does Roberto Martinez still have something to offer at Goodison Park.

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Aside from Louis van Gaal and his underachieving Man United, Everton’s Roberto Martinez represents the most under pressure manager in the Premier League.

The 42-year-old Spanish tactician has incurred the unmistakable wrath of the Goodison Park faithful for large portions of the current campaign, with the most recent criticism boiling over last time out against Watford.

The determined Toffees supporters seem to be growing increasingly tired of Martinez, as Everton have clearly failed to build upon their previous league form, and lack a certain sense of identity and direction under the Spaniard’s progressively turbulent leadership.

Although Martinez served to impress upon his initial introduction down at Goodison Park, Everton now resemble little more than a mid-table club with diminishing hope of really kicking on and achieving something worthwhile.

The entire Toffees back-line has proven distinctly questionable for large portions of the current campaign, Martinez himself has been heavily criticised from a tactical point of view on more than the odd occasion this season and for a side that once upheld a subtly impressive desire to play a slick and attractive style of football, Everton’s overall entertainment value has only worsened in recent seasons.

For someone who derives from one of the most technically gifted footballing nations in the world, Roberto Martinez has turned his current side into a far more physically aggressive outfit then before, which hasn’t exactly paid dividends for the Toffees.

If Everton want to keep hold of potential world class stars such as Romelu Lukaku in the modern era, then perhaps it really is time something was changed in the Goodison Park managerial department. The Toffees can’t afford to stay hesitant for too long after all, and as some Everton fans would rather see a new man in charge for the upcoming FA Cup semi-final at Wembley this month, maybe that change will come sooner rather than later.

It would be unwise to suggest that Roberto Martinez has suddenly turned into a poor manager overnight but as Everton clearly lack a major sense of direction under the Spaniard, the end of the road does in fact seem to be approaching for the former Swansea and Wigan boss.

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Liverpool midfielder Philippe Coutinho believes that every Celtic player will be given a chance to impress new manager Brendan Rodgers, as long as they are capable of playing possession football.

The Brazilian worked under Rodgers for two and a half years at Anfield and he believes the Northern Irishman is one of  the top coaches in the game. He was quoted by the Scottish Sun as saying.

WANT MORE? >> Celtic transfer news | Scottish Premiership transfer new

“Brendan’s new players will find him very fair. They will all get a fair chance to prove themselves. He believes in giving players opportunities and he is not the sort of coach to go in with pre-conceived ideas on players. If they show him in training they’re the sort of players who are capable of playing the possession football he likes, they’ll get a chance.”

“I am very fortunate to have played under some of the top coaches in the game — Rafa Benitez, Mauricio Pochettino, Dunga and, of course, now Jurgen Klopp (below). But I will always have a special affection for Brendan. He believed in me and gave me a chance to play for Liverpool.”

Before joining Liverpool in January 2013, the Brazilian had struggled to break in to the Inter Milan side.

Frustrated by the lack of game time, he agreed a move to the Reds, and developed his game under Rodgers as the Merseyside club narrowly missed out on the Premier League title in 2014.

In addition to Coutinho, Luis Suarez has spoken out and praised Rodgers for developing his game to adapt to the rigours of the Premier League.

Celtic fans will be hoping he has a similar effect at Parkhead and develop the young players at the club.

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23-year-old Granit Xhaka has been heavily linked with Arsenal of late.

The Borussia Monchengladbach ace is a versatile midfielder and is talented with both feet. Not only can he score, assist, cross the ball and defend well, he is a leader, which is exactly what the current Arsenal team need.

Despite his age, Xhaka is experienced, too, having already won the Swiss league title twice, as well as being capped for his country 39 times including and scoring an impressive six goals.

Arsenal must spend money this summer in order to compete at the top and even though Xhaka would of course be an excellent signing for Arsenal, there are plenty of players around that Arsenal should definitely consider.

Just in case a proposed £30m Xhaka move fails, here are FIVE alternatives for Arsene Wenger to ponder…

N’Golo Kante

N’Golo Kante has been one of the stars of the season.

The French midfielder has been an instrumental part of Leicester’s success and it is unbelievable to think that he was playing in the French second division just last season. Kante never stops running and is perhaps the best player in England in terms of his ability to win back the ball and start attacks for his side.

Kante could prove to be as vital for Arsenal as Patrick Vieira once was. The 25 year old has a release clause of just over £20m, and whether Xhaka is available or not, it would be criminal for Arsenal not to put a bid in.

William Carvalho

Another player who has been linked with Arsenal for some time is William Carvalho.

The Portuguese star is a strong, tough-tackling midfielder who has been capped 19 times already and will be looking to show off his strength and passing at the EUROs this summer.

At only 24, Carvalho has won the Portuguese cup as well as a host of Individual awards such as the Player of the Tournament at the Under-21 European Championship in 2013. He is a vital player for Sporting Lisbon and would definitely strengthen the Arsenal midfield.

Grzegorz Krychowiak

His name may be impossible to spell, but it is impossible to see why Arsenal haven’t signed him yet.

The Polish midfielder is incredible, both on and off the ball. He won the Europa league with Sevilla last season and will be looking to win it again this year with the final against Liverpool coming up. Krychowiak was also named in the La Liga team of the season last year which is an incredible achievement considering he was named ahead of stars from Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.

Ruben Neves

Portugal have a fine midfield, and it looks like they will continue to shine.

Along with Carvalho, Portugal boast Ruben Neves. Neves won his first cap in November and the 19 year old still looked comfortable despite playing in a side with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo.

Although he is a teenager, Neves already has Champions League experience and won the Young Player of the year award in Portugal last term. English fans may have seen Neves in action for Porto against Chelsea, where he registered an assist in a 2-1 win.

Like Xhaka, Neves has captained his side already, showing he is a leader. known as a tough tackler and chance-creator, he is just the calibre of player that Arsenal should be looking at.

Isco

Isco is undoubtably one of the best midfielders in the world.

His talent is, however, being wasted on Real Madrid’s bench. Of course, it is difficult to break into a side with the likes of Luka Modric playing in the same position as you, but Isco is far too good to be making substitute appearances.

The 24 year old Spaniard is known as an attacking midfielder, but with Arsene Wenger often playing a 4-2-3-1 formation, Isco would fit perfectly into the Arsenal midfield playing just behind Mesut Ozil, allowing him to break forward and start plenty of counter attacks, perhaps a little like Santi Cazorla often does for the Gunners.

If you didn’t see that coming then you’re either incredibly naive or haven’t been watching England long enough.

The way in which England crashed out of Euro 2016 to Iceland on Monday night shouldn’t have come as a surprise to anyone, yet we’re all sitting here completely shell shocked and struggling to comprehend how a team full of multimillionaire Premier League footballers couldn’t overcome a nation that doesn’t even have it’s own professional league.

You should have seen it coming a long time ago, all the signs were there but you refused to acknowledge them like the early stages of a broken marriage. You refused to accept the fact that, once again, it was all going to end in tears. It always does when one half of the relationship continuously makes mistakes, and never learns from previous ones.

Alarm bells should’ve started ringing louder than ever when Hodgson announced his preliminary squad for the tournament. So many baffling selections, very reasons to be optimistic about our chances of ending 50 years of hurt.

Quite frankly, Hodgson’s team selection was an insult to the nation, and especially the players he ultimately decided to ignore.

His decision to give Jack Wilshere a call up after playing just 146 minutes of Premier League football last season was farcical and handing Marcus Rashford a place in the squad on the back of a handful of impressive performances for Man United was questionable.

The way in which he overlooked several English players who had enjoyed consistent and successful campaigns for their clubs was expected, yet equally insulting. The likes of Jermain Defoe, Mark Noble, Aaron Cresswell, Danny Drinkwater, Michail Antonio and Andy Carroll must have wondered what more they could’ve done to earn a call up other than seek an unrealistic move to a big club – because that’s clearly all it takes for a player to get the England manager’s attention.

But England’s elimination was ultimately down to much more than that. If you weren’t alarmed by the team selection, you should’ve been when Hodgson continued to experiment with his starting XI and style of play in the last warm up friendly against Portugal.

Hodgson went in to this tournament without knowing what his strongest XI was and without knowing the best possible formation and style of play in order to be most effective at this level, and that is a complete and utter disgrace.

He proceeded to experiment with the likes of Harry Kane, Jamie Vardy and Daniel Sturridge deployed in wide areas, despite the trio scoring 57 Premier League goals between them last season.

The fact he was even attempting to make that work while overlooking the likes of Andros Townsend, whose performances for relegated Newcastle were pretty much the only positive the Magpies could take from such a dismal campaign, was baffling. The answers were staring him straight in the face, yet he decided to ignore them and do things his own way.

However, we could go on forever about Hodgson’s team selection and his inability to find the perfect tactics to make it a successful tournament for England. We all know the entire thing was flawed from start to finish, so why continue to pinpoint each individual issue?

From Harry Kane taking set-pieces to a big club mentality to playing Daniel Sturridge out wide, the whole thing was a complete and utter shambles. A disgrace to the nation, to the thousands of fans who spent their hard earned money to travel to France and sit through 90 minutes of watching a handful of the country’s best players huffing and puffing against four relatively poor footballing nations. A disgrace to themselves.

But instead let’s highlight the root of the problem and how we can pick ourselves up from yet another embarrassing exit from a major international tournament.

For me, the root of the problem is the way in which England managers continue to look to the Premier League’s big clubs for their English players and equally fast track young players straight to the first team without giving them experience at U21 level.

I always turn to Germany where this argument is concerned. Their failure to progress beyond the group stages at Euro 2000 and 2004 respectively led to the Germany FA deciding to rip up the rule book and start again – adopting a different approach to international football in an attempt to be great again.

A lot happened between then and their 2014 World Cup victory in Brazil, but it was arguably their 2009 U21 European Championship victory that provided such a successful period in the country’s footballing history.

That year, Germany’s U21 side thrashed England 4-0 in the final, in what can only be described as the beginning of a superb era of German international football, one that would go on to win the World Cup five years later.

Incredibly, six of Germany’s starting XI that day went on to lift the World Cup for the first team two years ago, five of which started against Argentina in Brazil. In contrast, James Milner is the only member of that England U21 side of 2009 who regularly gets called up to the first team. The others are either in and out of the squad sporadically, in prison, or never even got a call up for the first team – most notably Mark Noble, who captained England that night in Malmo.

Of course, that young England side may never have gone on to win a World Cup five years later. It will have been very unlikely. Though the sheer fact that not a single one of them can be regarded as a regular for the first team now says a lot about the England national team set-up and why it consistently fails.

Of the current England squad, 19 of the 23 who went to France had previously represented the U21s. But just eight of them had played more than 10 games before being given their chance at the very top, and it seems just James Milner had a proper ‘education’ at youth international level before becoming a first team regular – he made 46 appearances for the U21s.

Perhaps it’s time young English players should be made to earn their international education at youth level for a significant period of time before they can be considered as first team regulars? There will always be anomalies, such as the late bloomers and the incredibly talented, but that can only be said for two or three of the current England squad.

This squad was the youngest at Euro 2016, which many will point towards as being encouraging, but you could also say it was one of the least experienced. It’s all very well labelling the likes of Deli Alli, Harry Kane and Marcus Rashford as the future of English football, but you can’t just throw them in to the deep end and expect them to handle the immense pressure of representing one of the most underperforming football nations in the sport’s history. It’s a flawed strategy and incredibly naive to think it’ll ever work.

Whoever replaces Hodgson will have a job on their hands, a monumental effort is needed to make English football proud again, but so much needs to change off the field before we begin to see progress on it.

It’s all very well going on to qualify with a 100% record for a major tournament, but if you can’t back that up by producing on the big stage then that all becomes irrelevant.

It’s this harsh reality that is beginning to become synonymous with the England national team every two years, and unless the FA appoints a manger who is capable of doing things his way and not theirs, and who is prepared to oversee the development of English players at all levels, then we will forever be left embarrassed, upset and disappointed after each major tournament.

If ever there was a time to be like Germany, this is it. Though something tells me we’ll be feeling like this again in 2018.

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It’s no secret that goalscorers are key to the success of any fantasy football team and that’s certainly the case on Fan Duel.

But let’s face it – everybody has Harry Kane, Sergio Aguero or Zlatan Ibrahimovic up front, so simply picking a twenty-goal-per-season striker doesn’t give you that much of an advantage. Rather, it just cancels out any gains your Fan Duel rivals make.

Picking goalscoring midfielders, on the other hand, can really give you an advantage over the opposition. Fan Duel award 15 points per goal, more than twice the amount of the next highest scoring action – assists, which are worth seven points.

Just take a look at three midfielders who popped up with goals in the Premier League last weekend, starting with Everton’s Gareth Barry.

Before last weekend, the former England international hadn’t found the net for two straight seasons. But a winning strike against West Bromwich Albion saw him finish up as the seventh-top scorer from the last round of fixtures – not bad considering he costs just £8million.

It’s a similar story for Michail Antonio. Reinstated in midfield after a torrid performance at right-back against Chelsea, the winger justified Slaven Bilic’s decision by popping up at the back post to claim a late winner against Bournemouth. He’s a little pricier than Barry but has scored consistently throughout his career – the West Ham star could be a very shrewd buy if his midfield berth continues.

Last but not least is big Vick. Holding players aren’t famed for their fantasy team point hauls but his 83rd minute strike to clinch a win against Palace saw the Kenyan international pick up an impressive 36 points. He’s the cheapest of the above at just £7.9million.

So the next question is obvious; which midfielders stand the best chance of finding the net this weekend to give your Fan Duel points total a healthy boost? We’ve taken a look at three of the best options.

Ross Barkley

If you’ve got £9.8million to spend, then Everton’s Ross Barkley is a pretty safe bet. The England international found the net on the Premier League’s opening weekend and grabbed an assist against West Brom too. Likewise, the attacking midfielder bagged eight goals in the top flight last season and will be looking to produce a similar kind of tally this year.

Sadio Mane

Sadio Mane got his Liverpool career off to a flyer with a stunning solo effort against Arsenal, following 21 goals across two campaigns with Southampton. The African attacker always turns it on against the Premier League’s big boys and the Reds face Tottenham Hotspur away this Saturday. It looks set to be an attacking game with plenty of space on the break – which should see Mane thrive.

Dusan Tadic

Dusan Tadic is more a creator than a goalscorer but with Southampton’s forward line struggling to impact this season, the attacking midfielder may need to step up this weekend. It’s been a slow start to the campaign for the Saints but playing hosts to Sunderland represents their easiest fixture thus far. The Serbian international netted eight Premier League strikes in 2015/16 and has a good chance of opening his account against a distinctly average Black Cats side.

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