Not sure who plays alongside Jordan James with Amadeus out, maybe move Ben Davies there? Can’t see Joe Allen starting, he doesn’t play often for the Jacks anymore, though I guess could be useful to bring on in last 15 mins
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Joe Allen back from international retirement. I know we need cover for Ampadu, but Allen's barely played for Swansea all season.
Colwill not included again.
Goalkeepers: Danny Ward, Adam Davies, Karl Darlow
Defenders: Rhys Norrington-Davies, Ben Davies, Owen Beck, Joe Rodon, Chris Mepham, Ben Cabango, Neco Williams, Connor Roberts
Midfielders: Jordan James, Joe Allen, Josh Sheehan, Wes Burns, Ollie Cooper, Sorba Thomas, David Brooks
Forwards: Nathan Broadhead, Lewis Koumas, Brennan Johnson, Harry Wilson, Mark Harris, Liam Cullen, Kieffer Moore.
Not sure who plays alongside Jordan James with Amadeus out, maybe move Ben Davies there? Can’t see Joe Allen starting, he doesn’t play often for the Jacks anymore, though I guess could be useful to bring on in last 15 mins
That midfield is incredibly weak, but does seem strange and shortsighted to bring a clearly over the hill Allen back rather than bring a youngster through like Savage or Crew. But then I’d say the same about the obsession with Sheehan as well.
Sheehan's an interesting one, good technical player who probably plays lower than he should owing to injuries he sustained when he was younger but I've not seen anything in his friendly appearances to ensure a regular squad spot
Speaks to how poor the Welsh midfield is really. Beyond Ampadu & James the cupboard really is bare, need Crew/Savage/King/J.Colwill to kick on
I reckon Cooper’s appearance in midfield against Montenegro is a clue as to who will play there in Ampadu’s absence. As for Colwill, City’s start to the season would have worked against him and players such as Broadhead and Burns would have moved above him in the pecking order because they play for a Premier League team - with Brooks fit again as well, I can’t make too strong a case for him being in this squad.
Joe Allen ?!?
At this rate, we’ll have Bale & Tosh back before long
I think they've made a conscious decision to focus on the U21s qualifying, which is fair enough. If they didn't have a big game, I'd imagine the likes of Crew, Savage, Cotterill, King, etc would have been in the squad ahead of Sheehan. I also think it's a good idea to have Colwill there, as opposed to a couple of relatively meaningless Nations League games.
Im not massively sold on Allen returning as he hasn't played much football in the last 2 years and, if he's planning to stick around longer term, I think it'll be at the expense of someone else's development. I can see why he'd be an attractive option to bring on for 15 or 20 mins though.
Cooper needs to improve as I thought he was very poor against Montenegro (albeit in difficult conditions). I'm also a bit disappointed Tom Lawrence continues to get overlooked (unless he's refused a call up).
Josh Sheehan is a very good player, that if not for injuries, and for the fact he’s at a big L1 club that should have been promoted by now, he would be a championship regular. I imagine he’s paid championship level wages at Bolton as well which is why he hasn’t moved clubs yet.
To be fair, I wasn't being really serious and it's just my flippant posting style. I've actually seen Sheehan play quite a bit throughout his career. He had a spell at Newport under Mike Flynn where I watched a lot a games when he was coming back from injury after leaving Swansea. His career was cut short at Swansea where he was a rising star. It's great to see him flourish and good luck to him.
I'm serious about Jo Allen though. It's regressive imo. But who knows what the reasoning is? We're just guessing from the sidelines.
Both Colwills, Ashford, King and Tom Davies all in the u21 squad
https://x.com/Cymru/status/1841795339122319819