Gareth Southgate explains Conor Gallagher's selection for World Cup

England manager Gareth Southgate has explained the decision to pick Conor Gallagher for the World Cup in Qatar.

The Blues graduate had a tremendous loan stint at Crystal Palace last season and he is now a regular under manager Graham Potter.

His performances have been largely inconsistent, but Southgate still opted to select him over the experienced James Ward-Prowse.

In an exclusive interview on England's Twitter account, Southgate said that Gallagher is particularly fantastic at pressing the ball.

He said: "He’s fantastic at pressing the ball and I think there are going to be moments in these games where we need certain attributes."

Aside from Gallagher, teammate Mason Mount has also made the 26-man cut. There were no surprises over his inclusion in the squad.

Reece James was also expected to travel to Qatar with the Three Lions until he picked up a knee injury against AC Milan last month.

Southgate made it clear that he did not want to pick the right wing-back, who is unlikely to be fit until the beginning of December.