Aston Villa defender Tyrone Mings must improve if he is to become a starter for England, with Martin Keown questioning his confidence in possession, while speaking to Jim White on talkSPORT (13 November, 11:00am).
With Joe Gomez becoming the latest player to suffer a serious, long-term injury during the most gruelling of fixture schedules, Villa’s £26 million giant was thrown into the XI for Thursday’s clash with the Republic of Ireland at Wembley.
Starting on the left of a back three, Mings was rarely troubled by an Ireland side who are yet to score a goal from open play six games into the Stephen Kenny era.
While Keown is a fan of a man who has enjoyed a ‘meteoric rise’ since an injury-hit spell at Bournemouth, the Arsenal legend saw enough last night to suggest whether Mings will be able to handle Belgium’s star-studded frontline this weekend.
“I was a bit concerned by the ease people were going past him (in the Ireland match). I want to see him with more confidence in possession – the first few balls were going backwards he was quite safe but he’s slowly making those steps,” Keown said.
“I’m not sure yet (if Mings is England quality).
“It’s a fantastic opportunity for him to come into the England team. (But) he’s got to learn his stripes and the jury is still out for me.”
Mings has been a talismanic presence for an Aston Villa side who have gone from Championship also-rans to arguably the Premier League’s most watchable side during three rollercoaster years, establishing himself as one of the country’s most commanding centre-halves.
While Mings is a monster in the air, he must iron out those kinks – in particular a tendency to make unforced errors – if he is to take his game to a whole new level.
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