England vs Iceland LIVE: Build-up and team news ahead of Three Lions’ final Euro 2024 warm-up match

An interesting selection from Gareth Southgate. In goal, he’s swapped his first- and second-choice ‘keepers, but you’d think that back four will likely be the one that starts the first game against Serbia on 16 June (as Luke Shaw is touted to return only in time for the second group game against Denmark).

In midfield, Declan Rice is a guaranteed starter – does today’s line-up give an insight into Southgate’s thinking in the middle of the pitch? Will he start Kobbie Mainoo while bringing in Jude Bellingham in place of Cole Palmer? It would certainly tally with some fan and expert opinions, though the England boss has repeatedly looked like he’ll favour Conor Gallagher in that third midfielder spot.

In attack, Foden and Kane will certainly keep their places, and you’d have to expect Gordon to drop to the bench in favour of Saka once the Arsenal man has been properly rested.

Nevertheless, an interesting insight into Southgate’s thinking. The substitutions he makes will arguably be even more intriguing.

Gareth Southgate makes eight changes to the side that beat Bosnia and Herzegovina at the beginning of the week, having decided on his final 26-man squad yesterday.

In goal, Aaron Ramsdale comes in for Jordan Pickford, while in defence, Manchester City duo John Stones and Kyle Walker replace Ezri Konsa and Lewis Dunk.

Declan Rice and Kobbie Mainoo come into midfield, with Conor Gallagher and Trent Alexander-Arnold moving to the bench.

Phil Foden and Anthony Gordon are chosen in attack in place of Ebere Eze and Jarrod Bowen, while captain Harry Kane starts ahead of Ollie Watkins in attack.

Iceland XI: Valdimarsson; Anderson, Ingason, Gretarsson, Finnsson; Thorsteinsson, Gudmundsson, Traustason, Haraldsson; Gudjohnsen, Bjarkason.

England XI: Ramsdale; Walker, Stones, Guehi, Gomez; Alexander-Arnold, Rice; Saka, Foden, Palmer; Toney.

Iceland XI: Valdimarsson; Sampsted, Ingason, Gretarsson, Thorarinsson; Thorsteinsson, Gudmundsson, Traustason, Haraldsson; Gudjohnsen, Oskarsson.

There have been 77 England matches since Trent Alexander-Arnolddebuted in 2018. If he had played in them all, he would be level on caps already with Terry Butcher, wedged between John Terry and Tom Finney. Instead, he has 24 international appearances to his name, the same as Bert Williams and Paul Madeley.

An attempt to reinvent Alexander-Arnold as a midfielder – first criticised by Jurgen Klopp, then adopted – may have been a consequence of his preference for Kyle Walker and Trippier’s defensive qualities but is a bid to unleash a creator.

It is, though, something of a voyage into uncharted territory for Southgate and Alexander-Arnold alike. The Merseysider missed the March friendlies against Brazil and Belgium with injury – Southgate’s selectorial choices are not the only reason why he has so few caps – and when he scored against Bosnia and Herzegovina on Monday, it was with a volley that displayed his technical expertise. But only after beginning in midfield and later reverting to right-back.

Alexander-Arnold can play passes others cannot imagine, let alone execute. He can add a dimension. But he is learning on the job. Even the rookies Kobbie Mainoo and Adam Wharton have more positional experience; they are midfielders by trade. The relatively battle-hardened Conor Gallagher has come to seem the safe option. For Alexander-Arnold, the unproven element is whether he can operate as a midfielder in a defining tournament game, whether he has the positional acumen to shield the defence when out of possession.

Even allowing for a little journalistic hyperbole, and noting that he was up against the plucky but toothless Bosnia and Herzegovina in a friendly, this felt significant.

England’s 3-0 win didn’t tell us much that we didn’t already know. But what it did show was the effect of Alexander-Arnold as a No 6, an intriguing solution to Gareth Southgate’s conundrum of who to play alongside Declan Rice behind England’s preferred No 10, Jude Bellingham.

Deployed there – next to Conor Gallagher with Rice rested – Alexander-Arnold played at a walking pace Andrea Pirlo would be proud of, socks rolled down, using every bevel of his boot to spray passes to far-flung corners of the pitch. For much of the game he stood, scanned and sent the ball as far as his throwing leg could in a performance to be measured not by distance run but yards gained.

With the news of the squad announcement, we can begin to look into the rationale behind Southgate’s decisions, and the potential fixes to his various selection headaches – starting with the back four.

On Monday, Ezri Konsa’s third position of the night was his first-choice role. He ended up at centre-back. He started off at right-back, while the two specialist right-backs in the England side, Kieran Trippier and Trent Alexander-Arnold, played on the left and in midfield respectively. When Konsa went forward at set-pieces, he earned a penalty that Cole Palmer scored, inadvertently denied Jarrod Bowen a goal and instead led to Harry Kane finding the net. And yet the most significant post of Konsa’s evening was another altogether, one where he is rarely seen: left-back.

Simply the fact he moved there indicated an importance in Gareth Southgate’s planning.

With England’s lone bona fide left-back Luke Shaw injured and a doubt for Euro 2024, with Trippier looking the likeliest deputy, Konsa’s odd-job man status against Bosnia and Herzegovina was highly revealing. He could be an emergency left-back in Southgate’s planning. His chances of playing on the right are increased if Trippier and Alexander-Arnold are used elsewhere.

A newcomer has come to look very probable to take up a place in England’s eventual 26-man squad. Joe Gomez may have finished the game at left-back but despite rather more experience in a position he has played, and played well, for much of winter for Liverpool, he looks behind Konsa, another defensive jack of all trades.

Miguel Delaney is here to chat tactics and answer your questions after Gareth Southgate named his final England squad

He wans to hear who you think should be on the plane to Germany — and whether you agree with Southgate’s picks. He’ll share his thoughts and theories with you in the comments.

He’s also keen to hear your assessment of Southgate’s tactics and what you make of the team during the match against Iceland.

If you have any thoughts or a question for Miguel, submit them now, or when hes join you live at 7pm on Friday 7 June for the “Ask Me Anything” event.