Southgate explains Maguire and Maddison inclusion in World Cup squad

England announced its 26-man squad for the

in Qatar on Thursday and Leicester City star

was the surprise inclusion in the squad.

At his press conference on Thursday, Southgate admitted that Maddison’s form in recent weeks forced him to take the playmaker to Qatar.

"He's playing really well. He's a good player, we've always said he's a good player. He's earned the right,"

Southgate told reporters.

“I think at various stages there have been different conversations and debates about James, there were moments where ahead of the Euros I don't think he was in contention, he had a problem with his hip, and then September was probably a fair debate [over his exclusion].

"We think he can give us something slightly different to the other attacking players that we've got.

"We like the fact he finds those pockets of space. He plays forward, not enough players play forward in this day and age. I think he's playing as well as any of the attacking players in this country. He's different to the others, we have different types of threat, I think we could need that.

"His set-play delivery is outstanding. He can score goals from distance, which against low-block defences is another attribute which is a little different from our other players.”

Manchester United defender Maguire who has been heavily criticised for his performances in the last 12 months and this season has just played in 8 matches also was in the squad.

Southgate defended his decision and insisted that Maguire is one of England’s best defenders.

"He's one of our best centre-backs,"

he stated.

"I think within the squad, we've got a lot of players that have been to tournaments, have performed at that level, and know what's required.

"We've got other players who are playing well, who are in form right at this moment, and we've got to balance all of that when picking our team.”

Southgate was also asked about Roma striker Tammy Abraham's absence from his squad, to which he answered:

”Tammy's had a poor run of scoring form at the wrong time, really.

"It's not a case where we are three or four weeks away from the finals and the first match, we're now 10 days. Form could be more important.

"We don't really know with any of the players. We're watching their club form, but we don't know where they are until we see them face-to-face on the training pitch."

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