The Three Lions hope to go to the end this summer during the Euro, and hope for that to count on several strong men of the selection.
Rio Ferdinand believes Harry Kane and Jordan Pickford are the two players who are going to be the key to England’s chances of success in the European Championship.
Gareth Southgate’s side are looking to do better than their 2018 World Cup semi-final. The Three Lions face Croatia on Sunday for their entry into Euro 2020. And if Ferdinand has named France as the favorite to win the competition, he thinks the English are capable of reaching the last laps.
Asked by Goal about the key men at Southgate, Ferdinand replied: “I think Kane, the talisman, the captain, you need him fit and on fire. If he’s fit, England have a chance to do some really good things.”
The former Manchester United center-back also believes Pickford, who is set to start in goals at Wembley on Sunday, will have a big role to play.
“I was with Thierry [Henry] earlier and he raised a very good point, namely that you need a very good goalkeeper. I think Pickford proved in the last tournament that he likes big chances in the England shirt and if he can recover that kind of form I think England have a chance. “
There will be a lot of exciting talent at Euro 2020 and Ferdinand believes players like Kylian Mbappé and Joao Felix have the chance to light up the tournament.
He stated : “In England there are probably five or six players who could be selected and we would be delighted if any of them were selected. [Jude] Bellingham has playing time, you want to see it.
“I like young players and seeing young players having opportunities. Obviously, Mbappé, you want to see him fly in a tournament like this, you want [Cristiano] Ronaldo leaves in style, he could make us live great moments.
“But I would like to see someone like Joao Felix succeed. I love young people, I was there when Michael Owen burst onto the scene and saw what it was like, not just for him but for football in general, and we like to see that. “