Chelsea: England’s experimental squad should mildly worry Gary Cahill

Gareth Southgate’s squad for the upcoming international break does not say too much about his plans for the World Cup. That ambiguity is magnified for Gary Cahill, whose tenuous place at Chelsea carried over to the national team.

Tammy Abraham, Fikayo Tomori and Jake Clarke-Salter are the closest thing Chelsea have to an English contingent for the upcoming international break. The loanees are in the U21 team, while no Blues made the cut for Gareth Southgate’s senior team.

Southgate’s squad is a bit of an experiment, shaped as much by the long-term future and the current injury list as anything happening in Russia this summer. Jack Wilshere is back in the squad for the first team since Euro 2016. Four players will make their England debut in the friendlies over the next two weeks. One of the four is Burnley goalkeeper Nick Pope, who is about as unexpected in the squad as Joe Hart. However, Liverpool regular Trent Alexander-Arnold and Fulham’s top-rated Ryan Sessegnon remain with the younger squad.

Gary Cahill should be mildly concerned, but no more than that, by his exclusion. These four debutantes will not be playing in the World Cup. This squad is about availability, expediency and – refreshingly – the future of the Three Lions.

Two of the four – Alfie Mawson and James Tarkowski – are centre-backs. Mawson has made 30 Premier League starts for Swansea this season, and Tarkowski has started 23 times for Burnley. Cahill has only 18 league starts for Chelsea this season, and has seven years on both players. Cahill is closer in both starts and age to another notable defensive exclusion: Manchester United’s Chris Smalling.

Must Read: Five lessons learned - including a few positives - from Chelsea's UCL exit

And then there’s the matter of Joe Hart. Hart made the squad and Cahill did not. Jordan Pickford and Jack Butland are well ahead of Hart in the depth chart for the World Cup, but Hart can still go as each squad needs three goalkeepers.

Does Hart’s selection for the March friendlies mean he is closer to the squad than Cahill? Or is he as much of a space-filler now as he will be in the summer? Either way, the third goalkeeper is a mandated superfluity on the roster. Only centre-backs who can play will make the trip.

Unfortunately for Gary Cahill, he has very little control of his destiny for club and country. Antonio Rudiger is Chelsea’s starting left centre-back. Before last week’s game against Crystal Palace, Cahill’s previous Premier League start was the Watford humiliation on February 5. His performances throughout January took him out of the best XI, which saw him sit out all four games against Barcelona and the Manchester clubs. His start against Crystal Palace was more about resting Rudiger than naming the best XI.

A lack of playing time at the club is the leading cause of mortality for a player’s national team career. If Cahill cannot find a way around Antonio Rudiger at Chelsea, he will have to rely on reputation, experience and personality to get through to Gareth Southgate.

But that all assumes there is any deep meaning embedded in Southgate’s squad. Looking to this roster for indications of who will play in the World Cup means accepting both sides of the argument. If being off the list in March means being off the list in June, then being on the list now means being on the list then.

Next: Chelsea must keep a winning mentality focussed on the FA Cup

So if you cite this squad to say Gary Cahill’s time as an international is over, just remember: you’re also saying Lewis Cook, James Tarkowski and Joe “The Hat” Hart will be playing at the World Cup. Maverick line-ups for March friendlies are one thing. They should not be the basis for World Cup predictions.