What Dominic Calvert-Lewin needs to do to earn a seat on the plane to Euro 2024 – opinion

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Gareth Southgate announced another England squad today ahead of the October international break.

For Dominic Calvert-Lewin, it was yet another squad that he wasn’t named in – though it is certainly not a surprise.

Calvert-Lewin made his international debut for England in a 3-0 win over Wales in October 2020, with the striker opening the scoring on the half hour mark.

The forward has since earned a further ten caps and scored three goals – all coming during a brilliant period for Calvert-Lewin when he was banging in goals for fun at Everton.

However, DCL hasn’t made an appearance for England in over two years. The 26-year-old has fallen out of favour in the international set-up and was forced to miss the World Cup due to injuries and poor form.

The attacker has scored only seven goals since his last England match against Ukraine in July 2021 and he has arguably never even come close to being named in another squad under Southgate.

The likes of Harry Kane, Ollie Watkins and Callum Wilson have all continued to become excellent strikers for both club and country and have left Calvert-Lewin out in the dark.

This month’s international break was probably the only (slight) chance he actually had at making the team after netting three goals in three games. But it came too late for him to make the cut.

Calvert-Lewin knows exactly what he has to do to claw his way back into the England squad and it’s exactly what he has been doing. The Sheffield United academy graduate seems to be brimming with confidence since his return from injury and looks well on track to getting back to his best.

Can Gareth Southgate trust DCL?

However, Southgate needs a guarantee that he isn’t going to get injured. If DCL is fit and scoring then he could be a huge asset to the Three Lions, but it won’t be a good few months of a clean health bill before the England boss will consider him.

England will face their final round of European Championship qualifiers in March and if DCL can keep up his form and stay on his feet until then, then there is no reason why he won’t be back in the gaffer’s plans ahead of the Euro 2024 tournament.

The 26-year-old will face tough competition from both Watkins and Wilson for those final two places behind Kane, but he just needs to keep doing what he is doing and don’t end up back on the treatment table.

We all know that Calvert-Lewin can be one of the best in the business when available.