The Soccer Saturday panel took a moment to debate whether or not England missed out by not trying to cap Harry Arter after the Bournemouth midfielder made his competitive Ireland debut last week.
Clearly Jeff Stelling had been informed that Arter was actually an Ireland international after he previously called for him to be in the England squad along with Paul Merson, but today he posed the question to Matt Le Tissier of whether or not England missed a beat by not pushing harder.
Stelling also included what appeared to be a joke about his valuation by former club Woking, to which the panel burst out in laughter despite the joke not really being funny at all.
(Just fyi, they are talking about Artur Boruc, the goalkeeper initially..)
It's an interesting question.
Is Harry Arter a better player than what England have to offer in the midfield position? If Arter was to be included in an England squad he would be competing with Jordan Henderson, Danny Drinkwater, Jack Wilshere, and Eric Dier judging by their most recent squad.
Le Tissier suggested that there are a lot of midfielders ahead of him, which isn't really true but it's not like Harry would walk in and command a starting place. You certainly couldn't say that they missed out, as Stelling was implying. At least for the moment.
He is a fantastic player and was outstanding for Ireland in Vienna, and it seems clear that he would be in and around the England squad if he opted to play for them, but he didn't. He's an Ireland midfielder, and one we're delighted to have.
