I like Patrick Bamford as a player — he’s an old-school centre-forward who holds the ball up well and has a very good awareness of what’s going on around him.
He’s probably the closest English striker we’ve got to Harry Kane in terms of the way he plays the game.
He likes to get involved in build-up play, can drop off when he needs to and is used to having players buzzing around him at Leeds just as the England captain is at Tottenham.
He’s a Kane-lite, if you like, so a really good fit in that respect and I’m pleased for the player that he has finally got an England call-up.
But the fact of the matter is he is 27 already, he probably won’t play in the away World Cup qualifiers against Hungary and Poland, and is only likely to get get 20-odd minutes against Andorra as it’s also a qualifier after all.
Which begs the question: what’s the point of his call-up?
Yes, he’ll get a legacy cap and will one day be able to tell his grandchildren he played for his country.
But he knows what aeroplanes and dressing-rooms look like, and 20 minutes against Andorra isn’t going to tell Gareth Southgate anything he doesn’t know about the lad or prepare him for a game at a major tournament.
What would suit Bamford — and Dom Calvert-Lewin and Conor Coady for that matter — far more would be the reintroduction of ‘B’ internationals.
Let’s say England B took on Italy B in between the Andorra and Poland games at StadiumMK, the players on both sides would get a much better test than anything Andorra can provide.
It could be kids for a quid, families for a fiver, with Gareth Southgate and Steve Holland in attendance.
The players could stay at St George’s Park and get a feel for it there, with media days chucked in, and it’s a win for everyone.
Jadon Sancho would have arguably benefited far more from such games as well.
You only have to look how long it has taken him to settle at international level and he’s someone who had experience with the underage groups.
‘B’ internationals make much more capable international players, or let managers know a player isn’t up to full international status.
The fact this is all coming to Bamford at this stage of his career is because of the six loans he had in five years at Chelsea from the age of 18.
I’ve always felt one loan is good for a player and two, okay, not ideal but not the end of the world.
Any more than that is bad, though, because you can’t settle and prove what you’re really capable of.
Had Bamford done what Joe Willock has — moving to Newcastle from Arsenal after one season on loan — there’s a good chance he’d have got his call-up three or four years ago and he may well have gone to one, even two tournaments, as Kane’s back-up.
But his is a cautionary tale for youngsters that too many loan spells can slow down your development and stop you reaching the levels you’re capable of before it’s too late.
