Matt Jarvis tips former West Ham teammate Aaron Cresswell for England squad recall
Matt Jarvis spoke to RadioTimes.com about his former West Ham teammate Aaron Cresswell and a possible return to the England squad.
Matt Jarvis has backed his former West Ham teammate Aaron Cresswell for a return to the England squad after 'exceptional' form in 2020.
The former Hammers winger was speaking as a live guest on RadioTimes.com's Football Times podcast, and believes Cresswell has all the attributes to shine for the national team.
There are three England fixtures to be played over the coming week, but Cresswell is not part of the squad, but Jarvis believes he should be on the verge of a recall.
He said: "When he came I was still playing with Joey O'Brien at the time, and we had a great relationship, but Cressy then got into the team and you could tell from very early he's obviously been bought because he's a very good player.
"He is on the cusp of getting back in the England squad because of his performances. He's mentally very good, he's a nice guy, I think he works extremely hard.
"Also, he's a natural a left-sided player, he can play left back, higher up or left centre half, there's not many players who can do that and be left footed, they're quite unique."
Cresswell made three appearances for the Three Lions between 2016 and 2017 but has failed to feature in the iconic shirt since.
Ben Chilwell is likely to be the first-choice left-back going forward, while youngster Bukayo Saka and versatile full-back Kieran Trippier have been deployed there recently.
Jarvis believes Cresswell's own versatility could be the key to his return to the England setup after featuring in a slightly different role for West Ham this season.
"He's got a fantastic left foot, great delivery, and you've got to give him credit for adapting his game as well.
"You can see when he was playing left-back he was fantastic with assists, playing higher up the pitch, creating opportunities, got his England call-up from playing left-back, and then he's been asked to change and play on the left side of three at the back and he's been exceptional.
"You can't say anything other, especially this season, and the back end of last season.
"He's filled that position and made it his own. He still gets forward and puts crosses in from a deeper position, but because he's got that incredible left foot and delivery, it's working for them."
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Michael Potts is the Sport Editor for Radio Times, covering all of the biggest sporting events across the globe with previews, features, interviews and more. He has worked for Radio Times since 2019 and previously worked on the sport desk at Express.co.uk after starting his career writing features for What Culture. He achieved a first-class degree in Sports Journalism in 2014.