Barkley ready to embrace role of ‘new Gazza’
Ross Barkley says he has matured as a player and is ready to try and establish himself as the midfield creative spark England have lacked since Paul Gascoigne.
The Chelsea midfielder, fit again after a long-term hamstring injury and back in the England squad after a two-year absence, was dubbed ‘the new Gazza’ after bursting onto the scene as a teenager at Everton.
He has long been seen as a potential long-term successor to the former Tottenham star.
Now 24, Barkley, who made his England debut in 2013, is keen to fulfil his potential – but accepts he faces stiff competition for a place.
“All of the midfielders will be thinking that,” he said. “It is a challenge for us to go out there and produce the goods as Gazza did when he was a player.
“We have a lot of talent in the squad that can produce magic at any point in the game and we have a confident bunch of lads and there is a lot of talent coming through.”
Barkley has not played for his country since the friendly against Australia prior to Euro 2016, but was handed a recall last week by boss Gareth Southgate for the Nations League matches against Croatia and Spain.
And he feels he deserves to be back in the squad after maturing on and off the pitch and impressing when given a chance to shine by Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri this season.
He said: “I’m over the moon to be back, I feel like it’s been a long time coming but I feel like I have worked hard over the last couple of years and that it’s fully deserved that I am back here.
“I feel like I have matured as a person and understood what football is, and taken little details on as I have done now under the manager (Sarri). Things are going really well for me now and I’m fully focused on improving and kicking on.”
On missing out on the summer’s successful World Cup campaign in Russia, Barkley added: “It was frustrating for me because England means the world to me, to play for your country, but these things happen in football and you have to react and work hard to get your rewards, which I am doing.
“I was proud to see the lads do really well and see how proud the country was of the boys.
“After where I was at, I had had a difficult season through injuries and I had a few niggles but kept a positive mind. I had a strong pre-season and things are going well for me now.”
