Marcus Rashford and Jordan Henderson only have themselves to blame for Euro 2024 snubs: Winners and losers as England manager Gareth Southgate finally shows his ruthless side while Crystal Palace earn as many call-ups as Man City

Rashford has had an almighty fall from grace after a stunning previous campaign in which he scored a career high of 30 goals. But since penning a lucrative contract at Old Trafford, he has taken his eye off the ball and gone backwards. Being dropped from the England squad weeks before a major tournament has to be his lowest point.

Even with his huge slump in form and the repeated questions about his attitude, Rashford is a lethal player on his day and has been an England regular for tournaments, albeit not always a starter, since he broke through as an 18-year-old in 2016.

He has, however, been off-form for most of the season and has often looked like a player lacking desire and hunger. His tequila-fuelled night out in Belfast which led to him missing training also underlined his lack of professionalism, something which has been of increasing concern within the last year.

Lest we forget, Rashford was a national hero in 2020 for campaigning on food poverty amid the pandemic, and fans rallied to him after he faced shocking social media abuse after missing a penalty in the Euro 2020 final shootout. He was one of the poster-boys of the likeable new generation which Southgate has brought through. But now the coach has decided that he does not want him around the squad, a damning indictment of how his status has faded in the last year.

Despite being England’s most successful manager since Sir Alf Ramsey, Southgate has lacked support from many sections of the England fanbase because of the perception that he had too much faith in the old guard and gave under-performing players a pass over upstarts who were banging on the door.

Not anymore. Southgate has emphatically broken with his past tendencies and made a real statement with this squad. Henderson’s exclusion might have been expected as was Sterling’s, but leaving out Rashford is a massive decision. But it is also difficult to argue with, and Southgate has rewarded Bowen and Gordon, who registered 22 and 21 goal contributions in the Premier League this season, respectively, compared to Rashford’s measly tally of nine.

The England manager has sent out a clear message that reputation and past contributions are not enough to make it into his squad, and that form is the most important factor. And it means that whatever happens in Germany, he will know he picked the top performing players at the time and not the most recognised names.

Henderson must have known his England career was at risk when he moved to Al-Ettifaq last summer, but decided to go for it anyway, burning his bridges with the LGBTQ+ community in the process. He ultimately chose greed over continuing at the highest level and has been rightly punished for it.

Henderson did realise his mistake and ultimately chose to cut short his sojourn in Saudi Arabia after just five months, but the disruption took its toll on his performance levels and he was a huge disappointment for Ajax, the nadir coming when he was roasted by a television reporter after a dismal showing in a 2-2 draw with Fortuna Sittard.

He missed England’s March friendlies due to injury, but that was a blessing in disguise for Southgate, who would have faced criticism had he continued to show faith in Henderson amid his plummeting form. This was, therefore, an easy decision for the manager in the end.

On the one hand it is sad to see such an experienced player, who had been part of the squad for every major tournament since 2012, end his England career in this way. But Henderson only has himself to blame.

Just three months ago, it would have been very hard to believe that Crystal Palace would have as many players in the England squad as Manchester City. The Eagles were 16th in the Premier League table and had won just six games out of 24 when Roy Hodgson stepped down and was succeeded by Oliver Glasner.

But the Austrian has dramatically transformed the team’s fortunes, inspiring them to win six of their final seven games while remaining unbeaten, scoring 21 goals and conceding just three. Palace sparked the end of Liverpool’s title bid and then destroyed Manchester United before rounding off the season by hammering Aston Villa. And some of the leading lights of that stunning revival have been rewarded with a place in Southgate’s squad.

Eberechi Eze has played for England before and it’s no surprise to see him back in the fold after scoring five goals and setting up two in the run-in. Marc Guehi has also been capped before and will be one of the most coveted defenders when the transfer window opens this summer.

Adam Wharton’s inclusion, however, was somewhat unexpected, although he is also worthy of his place and can pick up the baton from Henderson in holding midfield. Goalkeeper Dean Henderson has also played a big role in the Eagles’ turnaround and should be in line to go to Germany ahead of James Trafford after his club-mate Sam Johnstone was ruled out through injury.

Spare a thought for the medics and physios at St George’s Park, who will be under huge pressure to get key players fit and firing in time for the tournament, especially defenders, as three of England’s first-choice back-four are touch and go for the tournament.

Harry Maguire is reeling after a third injury setback of the season, and the muscular issue he is currently recovering from has him fighting to be fit for the FA Cup final, also putting his place in Germany in doubt.

John Stones has also had rotten luck with injuries, which limited him to just 12 Premier League starts, and although he recovered in time for the title run-in, the fact that he has played just 21 minutes of football within the last month demonstrates that Pep Guardiola started to doubt his durability.

Luke Shaw has suffered even more, having missed three months at the start of the season and another three at the end. The United left-back has not played since mid-February and there is extra pressure to ensure he is fit given the lack of options in his position, which has led to Southgate considering playing Kieran Trippier out of position.

It is an exciting time for young English centre-backs, as the squad list demonstrates. Branthwaite keeps his place after earning his first England call-up in March, although the 21-year-old is not the youngest member of the squad’s defence.

That honour goes to Quansah, who has shone in his breakthrough season with Liverpool and has earned his debut call-up. Ezri Konsa and Guehi have both had excellent seasons for Aston Villa and Crystal Palace, respectively.

England’s defence is the one area of concern heading into the tournament as, unlike the midfield and attack, it is not stocked with world stars. The fact that Maguire is the most experienced centre-back is unsettling in some ways. But the likes of Quansah and Branthwaite now have their chance to shine and stake their claim to lead the Three Lions’ defence into the future.