Rico Lewis has earned his first call-up to the England senior squad. It is a fitting reward for the form Lewis has shown when called upon by Pep Guardiola.
With Callum Wilson and James Maddison withdrawing from the England squad due to injury Gareth Southgate was forced to call up replacements. Cole Palmer and Rico Lewis were both called up to the senior side.
It caps a remarkable rise for the City academy graduate. Lewis rose to prominence last season by forcing himself into Pep Guardiola’s squad as City secured the treble. He put in some key displays as City went on a surge in the second half of the season to secure their place in English football history.
This season has seen Lewis continue to develop and when called upon he has shown. He was man-of-the-match in City’s 3-1 win over RB Leipzig at the Red Bull Arena in October. Pep Guardiola spoke glowingly about the youngster following City’s win. He called Lewis one of the best young players he has coached following his performance against RB Leipzig saying: “To find a player like him playing in the pockets, how he has to move as a holding midfielder, moving in the spaces, he is one of the best I’ve ever trained by far.”
Rico Lewis has shown maturity beyond his years in his brief Manchester City career so far. His intelligence and technical ability to play one of the more difficult roles for the European champions speaks volumes about the player he is.
The youngster will be hoping to earn his first senior cap in England’s games against Malta and North Macedonia.
