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Everton: Sam Carroll claims that Michael Keane ‘should easily be starting for England’

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Image for Everton: Sam Carroll claims that Michael Keane ‘should easily be starting for England’

The Liverpool Echo reporter Sam Carroll has recently claimed that Everton centre-back Michael Keane “should easily be starting for England” on current form.

So far this season, the 27-year-old defender has been solid for Carlo Ancelotti’s side, having picked up a 6.88/10 average rating over 15 league appearances (per WhoScored).

That rating has made the former Burnley centre-back the seventh-best performer in the Toffees’ squad in the Premier League.

In terms of his international career, Keane is no stranger to the England setup, however, his appearances have been few and far between.

His first outing for the Three Lions came in a friendly against Germany back in 2017 and since then he has only gone on to win 12 caps in total for his nation (per Transfermarkt).

During the latest episode of the Liverpool Echo’s Royal Blue: The Everton FC Podcast, Carroll waxed lyrical over the Englishman and made a claim about his international career.

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To kick off this quiz on Seamus Coleman, what squad number does the right-back currently wear for the Toffees?

He said: “I think Michael Keane, right now, should easily be starting for England. Michael Keane just puts confidence in you now, doesn’t he?

“Those first couple of seasons when he was there and a little bit like [Yerry] Mina, he’d make a mistake every few games or if he got turned early on, he’d look like everything was moving at a million miles an hour.

“Now, he’s just composed.”

TIF Thoughts on what Sam Carroll said about Michael Keane…

As can be seen in what the journalist had to say, he believes that the £25.2m-rated centre-back has improved with the Toffees so much so that he should now be nailed on for a spot in England’s starting XI.

Should Michael Keane be a guaranteed starter for England on current form?

No, he's not that good

No, he's not that good

Yes, he's a class player

Yes, he's a class player

In their last outing, the Three Lions defeated Iceland 4-0 and starting in a back three that day was Harry Maguire, Eric Dier and Kyle Walker (per Transfermarkt).

This season, the Manchester United defender has delivered a 6.96/10 average rating in the league, the Tottenham Hotspur defensive midfielder a 6.71/10 and the Manchester City full-back a 6.82/10.

So, with Keane having picked up a solid 6.88/10 average rating in the league so far this term, it would seem he has been performing better than two of the three players which started England’s last game as a centre-back.

That would certainly suggest that Carroll is right to claim that Keane should be a starter in Gareth Southgate’s side.

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