I understand both sides.
It is hard to take your work seriously if you do not get a fair chance. He was part of the squad for the Euros & Nation League but made it to the bench only twice in 13 matches.
So I get it why Bruce must have ignored whatever recording was given to him because there is a good chance, it is a massive waste of his time.
At the same time, I empathise with Southgate.
In an international setup, it is very challenging to provide every player with a fair opportunity. You have a limited number of games, and you must identify a small group of players who can take you all the way, so you can concentrate on educating those individuals. It is almost impossible to gradually adapt every good player to your plans. Players struggle in club competitions when they get to play 60 games per season. It took Kai Havertz around 25 games to settle in. You donāt have the luxury of providing every debutant with 25 appearances.
So, a lot of work must happen off the field. Bruce didnāt give his best there and should rightly be called out for that. Of course, the manner of criticism is key.
Bruce, however, is completely right not to waste his time if he thinks there is no point in being part of the squad.
The combination of his contract extension, the Brentford performance, the qualification to the QFs and now the news that heās not interested in joining the England squad have made him a bit of a popular figure in media now.
I feel like heās been one of the players thatās gone under the radar for some time and hasnāt received the same attention as other players in our team.
I expect him to be scrutinized going forward, he already is tbf. Heās gonna be one of the hottest topics during this break.
I like to think heās the type to use that as fuel to get even better. He kinda did that after that Brentford opener 3 years ago when Carragher and Neville tried to convince everyone that heās shit.
