STUART PEARCE reckons Luke Shaw must go to the World Cup with England.
Shaw’s 34th and most recent England cap came in the Euro 2024 final defeat to Spain in Berlin but he is yet to appear under current boss Thomas Tuchel.
The German last month suggested he could throw the experienced left-back a lifeline, revealing he is in contention for a recall to the squad.
And Pearce has seen enough of Shaw’s displays during Manchester United’s resurgence under interim boss Michael Carrick to believe he should be included.
Given he is not being flogged in European competition — following United’s failure to qualify for the current campaign — he should be in decent physical shape come the summer.
Pearce, 63, told SunSport: “The full-back positions are the toughest of the lot to call.
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“If Manchester United carry on the ascension that they’re on at the moment, you have got to talk about Luke Shaw.
“He’s got experience at the tournaments. When he’s been out of the England side, we’ve missed him. He’s a rounded left-back.
“More to the point, when you compare him to some of the others around, nobody probably had really nailed their colours to the mast in regards to playing there.
“Tino Livramento has come in as have Myles Lewis-Skelly and Nico O’Reilly. There’s a lot of players there that are good options.
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“But I’m sure if Luke Shaw recovers the form we know he can, he could be the No 1 left-back.”
Geoff Hurst, Martin Peters, Cole Palmer and Shaw are the only men to have scored for the England men’s team in a major final.
He netted after just two minutes of the Euro 2020 showpiece at Wembley in July 2021 to put the Three Lions 1-0 up over Italy.
They were eventually beaten on penalties following a 1-1 draw.
Shaw has also played at two World Cups — the 2014 Brazil tournament when he was 18 and then Qatar in 2022.
Pearce — speaking on behalf of Betway — knows all about Shaw’s qualities as a player from his time as England Under-21s boss.
Shaw was just 17 and playing for Southampton when Pearce first selected him for the Young Lions.
The former Nottingham Forest left-back, who won 78 England caps, said: “It’s his history. More so, his history plays a big part. The fact he’s been to tournaments.
“He knows what it’s like. He’s a good member of the squad.
“I worked with him at Under-21 level. I know his mentality. More to the point, I don’t think there’s been another left-back that has come along that has made us say, we can’t stop thinking about Luke Shaw.
“He’s a good member of the squad, 100 per cent. We’ve seen that with Jordan Henderson.
“The manager brought Henderson into the squad as much for what he is like as a person.
“You’ve got to have good tourists on the road with you, that’s for sure.”
With Shaw at left-back, Pearce would plump for a back four for when England face Croatia, Ghana and Panama in the group stage of the World Cup.
Pearce is also a “massive fan” of centre-back Marc Guehi, who joined Manchester City from Crystal Palace in the winter transfer window.
He says Guehi has “always been No 1 on my list” for that position.
With City’s John Stones not yet up to full fitness, Pearce would go for Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa as Guehi’s defensive partner.
Pearce said: “I’m impressed by Guehi’s ability to deal with people one-on-one.
“He’s got that little bit of pace and his biggest forte is he reads the game extremely well.”
Stuart Pearce was speaking to SunSport on behalf of Betway. For football betting tips visit betway.com
