Arsenal star ‘worth his weight in gold’; World Cup snub would mean Southgate ‘doesn’t fancy him’

Kevin Campbell has argued that Arsenal defender Ben White should be “worth his weight in gold” for England as his “versatility” makes him a valuable asset.

The Gunners splashed out around £50m to sign White last summer after he enjoyed a fruitful debut season in the Premier League with Brighton.

The Englishman performed well for Arsenal last term as he was often partnered with Gabriel Magalhaes at centre-back.

This summer, William Saliba returned to the club and he has struck up a superb partnership with Gabriel.

This could have easily left White down the pecking order. But he has been converted into a right-back this term and he is thriving in this role.

It is now less than a month until the World Cup in Qatar gets underway. White has been capped four times for England with his last outing coming during the March international break earlier this year.

His form is becoming hard to ignore though and injuries to Kyle Walker and Reece James have boosted White’s chances of going to the tournament.

Ex-Arsenal striker Campbell thinks White’s form “should be enough” for him to go to the World Cup.

“I would think that a versatile player like Ben White, who can play as a centre-back in a two or a three and as a right-back, then I think he should be worth his weight in gold,” Campbell told talkSPORT.

“That’s when you consider the injuries that have come up within that England squad.

“Ultimately, it’s down to the manager and if Gareth Southgate doesn’t fancy him, then I don’t see Ben White going to the World Cup.

“It’s all got to come down to the manager, if the manager fancies Ben White, then he’s playing at a very high level right now.

“He’s also playing for the league leaders which should be enough in my opinion.

Campbell is also a big admirer of Bukayo Saka. He thinks that the winger “should start” for England this winter.

“For me, I think [Saka] should start, but a lot of it depends on the formation that Gareth Southgate plays,” Campbell added.

“We’ve seen him tinker with the formation, play three at the back, five across midfield with two up front. That doesn’t suit Saka as much because he isn’t a wing-back.

“Saka is a winger, a wide man, a wide forward and where he operates best is on the right-hand side where he can cut in on his left foot.

“Or we’ve seen moments where he goes on the outside.

“Against Bodo/Glimt we saw go down the outside and his goal against Leeds with his so-called weaker foot produced this devastating finish.

“So, he’s improving which is always a good thing when you’re coming into a World Cup.”

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