Arsenal’s Carl Jenkinson has confirmed that he wants to play international football for England after appearing for the Finland Under-21 side. How beneficial is the news to England boss Roy Hodgson?
Carl Jenkinson would have had a very difficult choice to make in his younger days. His Mum is Finnish and when the chance to play for the Finland Under-21 team presented itself, he took it with both hands. He may have thought that he would never get a shot at playing for England but after talks with Roy Hodgson the Arsenal full back could be in line for a regular place as soon as he qualifies.
This is massive news for England in a number of ways. Firstly, it’s positive for the nation to have an ideal long term right back who will hold down his place in the team as soon as he can play. He has already trained with the England senior team and has proved at Arsenal this season that he can be as consistent as Glen Johnson and Kyle Walker, if not better.
Jenkinson was signed from Charlton last summer and has benefited from the philosophy of football branded across Arsenal by the Frenchman. This is beneficial for England because it means technically they are getting a right back slightly different to what has been the norm in the last few years. If England are going to become a passing team and catch up with France, Spain, Germany and others, more players like Jenkinson need to be brought up in the same way and blended into the team.
“He didn’t take a lot of convincing. We had a problem with Kyle Walker and wanted a full complement in our training session, so we called Carl up. He was in my thoughts anyway. I invited him to train with us knowing full well he couldn’t take part in this game, but it gave me the opportunity to sit down and ask him the question – he made it very clear he wanted to play for England,” said Roy Hodgson.
It’s also important not to forget that Jenkinson is actually a very good defensively minded player. His pace is a massive asset because it means he can be used as a weapon in both halves of the pitch. He can get back quickly if he has been forward in an attack and he can get back to cover for older and slower players who may have lingered forward after a corner or free kick.
He will only get better based on the players and the experience around him. Ashley Cole is arguably the best full back that England have ever had in both an attacking and defensive sense so Jenkinson can mirror his counterpart who has a fairly similar role with both club and country. He is also being well handled and well looked after by both Wenger and Hodgson which will reduce the chances of burn out and serious injury.
If Jenkinson can keep Bacary Sagna out of the Arsenal team, now the Frenchman has returned from injury then he will be competing with Johnson and Walker for that England position in no time at all and there are many reasons on form alone why he should get the spot before either of them.
image: © Ronnie Macdonald
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