Chelsea’s Reece James is a “better defender” than Trent Alexander-Arnold, according to Glen Johnson, who feels the right-back position is a “toss-up” between the duo for England.
Alexander-Arnold has already established himself as arguably one of the best right-back in world football over the past few years after playing a vital role in Liverpool’s recent success.
And James has been a regular at Chelsea under Frank Lampard over the past 18 months and has also broken into the senior England team.
Both players have been selected by England manager Gareth Southgate for the upcoming friendly games against Ireland, and the Nations League matches against Belgium & Iceland.
But, Alexander-Arnold is now out of the games after suffering a injury in Liverpool’s 1-1 draw with Manchester City on Sunday, while James is suspended for the Nations League fixtures.
“I would say, overall, it’s a toss-up between Trent and Reece James,” Johnson told compare.bet when asked who is the best option for England at the right-back position.
“It depends on who you’re playing against of course, but I think Reece James is a better defender. I think he’s quicker, stronger.
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“Trent is great on the ball, he’s a great footballer, and he’s very smart and a lot wiser than his age suggests. But in international football, you get a lot more time on the ball, so I think Trent would be number one, but Reece would be a fantastic back-up.”
Former Chelsea defender Johnson added: “At the moment, I think he’s probably getting it right picking Mount. “But look, in terms of what Grealish can do, of course, we’ve seen him in fantastic form, but it’s a difficult one.
“With Grealish, he’s Villa’s main man and loves being the main man, but when he goes to the England camp he’s not the main man.
“So he’s got to adapt the way he plays and when he learns to do that, then I think he’ll certainly climb the ladder in Southgate’s pecking order.”
