Jamie Carragher has jumped in the way of those doubters directing their concerns towards Mason Mount.
Speaking on Sky Sports yesterday, Carragher leapt to the defence of the Chelsea midfielder, whilst including him in his preferred XI for England’s World Cup opener against Iran.
Mount will have less than a week now to influence Gareth Southgate enough to select him for the maiden 11 in Qatar.
His performances at club level recently probably haven’t done him any favours.
Chelsea’s poor Premier League run hasn’t reflected well on anyone at Stamford Bridge, especially Graham Potter.
But all domestic worries can be swept under the carpet for a month or so, as international football takes centre stage.
Mount makes Carragher’s England XI
England’s curtain raiser is a tricky one to navigate.
Getting off to the best start will require picking near-enough the best team.
Although a handful of players are pretty-much guaranteed a spot in the side, there are several positions up for grabs.
Particularly in Mount’s area of expertise, the advanced midfield role that could be filled by several talented individuals.
Yet, Carragher gave the Cobham academy graduate the nod for his XI, due to the 23-year-old’s astute footballing brain.
“People question a lot of the time Mount, maybe because he’s not as eye catching as other players,” said the former Liverpool defender.
“But every manager picks him, whether it’s at Chelsea or England because he’s a clever footballer who understands the other side of the game as well.
“He can do a job in that midfield position.”
Since establishing himself in English football, Mount has always been trusted by his coaches.
Whether that be Frank Lampard at Derby County or Chelsea, Southgate and the Three Lions, Thomas Tuchel at Stamford Bridge, or now Potter, they’ve always relied on the England international.
To his credit, he’s very rarely let any of them down.
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