Harvey Barnes is set to be called up to Thomas Tuchel's England squad, just a month after he turned down the chance to represent Scotland ahead of this summer's World Cup.
The 28-year-old, who won his only England cap in a friendly against Wales in October 2020, has been one of Newcastle United's best performers this season, scoring 14 goals in all competitions.
Earlier this week, Barnes was left out of England's 35-man squad for upcoming friendlies against Uruguay and Japan, a decision we thought was harsh on the in-form winger.
But on Sunday evening, it was widely reported that he will replace the injured Eberechi Eze, who missed Arsenal's Carabao Cup final defeat to Manchester City with a calf injury.
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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta provided a minor update on Eze after the final whistle at Wembley. He said: “We have to do another scan in six or seven days and wait and see the results."
As noted above, Barnes turned down the chance to switch international allegiance after receiving an approach from Scotland, the birthplace of his maternal grandparents.
Scotland head coach Steve Clarke was keen to add Barnes to his squad ahead of the World Cup but revealed after the UEFA Nations League draw in February that it wasn't going to materialise.
"This time I can say for sure, Harvey's going to concentrate on trying to play for England, he's not going to come to Scotland," Clarke told BBC Radio 5 Live.
"You can put that one out there. Nobody needs to ask me or Harvey about it any more. Am I disappointed? No, listen, Harvey can make up his own mind. We move on."
Alan Shearer praises Harvey Barnes for turning down chance to play for Scotland
Given his last England call-up was in 2020, some questioned Barnes' decision to snub Scotland ahead of the World Cup.
Alan Shearer, on the other hand, was full of admiration for the winger.
"I think Harvey Barnes was right to snub Scotland, he has a chance of going to the World Cup with England, albeit there's lots of players ahead of him at this moment in time," he told Betfair.
"I admire his decision. There's no doubt he would have walked into the Scotland team. But clearly that's not going to be the case with England. So, there are players ahead of him.
"But he's having a good season and there's no doubt he's a lot better player for Newcastle on the left-hand side."
Shearer added: "He enjoys playing there a lot more, you can see that. I hope he continues his form, continues starting every game and he gets a good crack at it. Not only would he walk into the squad, he would also walk into the team with Scotland. But that's very different with England."
England will come up against Uruguay on March 27 and Japan on March 31.
Topics: England, Scotland, Newcastle United
Jack Kenmare