England kick off their 2018 World Cup campaign in Volgograd against Tunisia on Monday night.
Gareth Southgate selected four Manchester United players in his England squad for this summer – Phil Jones, Ashley Young, Jesse Lingard and Marcus Rashford.
Since switching to a 3-5-1-1 formation after successfully qualifying for Russia 2018, Ashley Young has made his return to the international scene.
The 32-year-old performed well at left-back for us this past season to earn his place in Southgate’s England side.
What’s more, Sky Sports believe that Ashley Young will start England’s World Cup opener on Monday. Young is the eldest player in the squad and has more caps than most of the England players this summer, with 34.
The experienced United player is expected to get the nod ahead of Tottenham Hotspur’s Danny Rose, who we’ve been strongly linked with signing over the past year.
Rose only made nine Premier League starts for Mauricio Pochettino’s side this past season due to a mixture to injuries, a pre-season outburst and the form of Ben Davies at left-back.
The second Manchester United player that is expected to start for England on Monday, according to Sky sources, is Jesse Lingard.
Lingard impressed pre-tournament playing alongside Dele Alli in the central midfield roles behind Raheem Sterling and Harry Kane. The combination of Alli and Lingard created a number of opportunities and opened up space for teammates.
The 25-year-old had a breakout season in 2017-18, scoring eight goals and recording five assists in his 33 Premier League appearances (20 starts). Heading into the World Cup he has one goal in 12 international matches.
