Wayne Rooney has questioned Gareth Southgate for leaving Jack Grealish out of England's Euro 2024 squad, naming the player who should have been binned instead, while Paul Ince has destroyed a popular theory about the the current Three Lions squad.

The Three Lions begin their quest to end 58 years of hurt on Sunday when they take on Serbia in Gelsenkirchen. Gareth Southgate's side - blessed with an array of attacking talent - are among joint favourites to win the 17th edition of the European Championships, having lost the final last time out, on home soil, to Italy on penalties.

However, many observers feel England will never have a better chance at winning a trophy than they do this year, with Southgate himself admitting that a failure to lift the trophy will likely see his removal as national manager, such are the expectations on his shoulders.

"If we don't win, I probably won't be here anymore. Therefore, it might be the last chance," Southgate told BILD.

"I think around half the national coaches leave after a tournament - that's the nature of international football.

"I've been here for almost eight years now and we've come close. You can't constantly put yourself in front of the public and say, 'A little more please', because at some point people lose faith.

"If we want to be a great team and I want to be a top coach, you must deliver in big moments."

Blessed with so many world-class talents, including Bayern Munich's elite goalscorer Harry Kane and Ballon d'Or contender Jude Bellingham, the Three Lions were able to leave the likes of Grealish and Marcus Rashford behind, two players who were big players for them at the 2022 World Cup.

Paul Ince ridicules England theory Indeed, some have stated that the current England squad Southgate has chosen from is the best ever at his disposal, and there can be no excuses for failing to bring home the Henri Delaunay cup.

However, former Man Utd and Liverpool midfielder Ince has destroyed such claims, shutting down the boast and pouring cold water on those theories.

"England having their best ever squad? It's nowhere near the case. It's totally ridiculous," he told bet365. "If you actually go back to the squads of the past, 1990 for example, look at the players that were in that squad, especially in midfield.

"No disrespect intended, but in this squad are the likes of Adam Wharton who has very little experience, Kobbie Mainoo and Declan Rice, in 1990 there was Bryan Robson and Paul Gascoigne. In more recent eras you had midfielders like Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard, these are great, great players."

Nonetheless, with a falling standard in international football, Ince admits England do have a chance.

He added: "I think there's people looking at recent tournaments at the squad that got beaten by Italy and got to the semi-finals in 2018, we feel that this is probably a very good squad.

"But you've got to understand the level of players that we were playing against in 96 to the level that players are now. It's changed a lot. The level's not as high as it was back in our time.

"Even if you look at someone like Gheorghe Hagi, who played for Romania, there were so many world-class players and I don't think you get that level with international teams now. Look at Italy with Nicolo Barella, then look back to Paulo Rossi and Marco Tardelli, these are the types of players we were playing against in international football."

Rooney: Grealish should have got nod for England Ince concluded: "The level of international football for me has dropped which means that England have got a very good chance. They've got a very good squad. But to say it's the best squad of all time is totally ridiculous."

Having left 36-cap Grealish behind, one man who felt he should have been on the plane is England's second-highest goalscorer of all time in Rooney.

Suggesting the Manchester City man could have brought something different, Rooney has claimed Southgate should have been binned off Jarrod Bown instead.

Speaking on The Overlap podcast, Rooney said: "Grealish, I would have taken him. Bowen on the right, they have Saka, Cole Palmer, Foden could play out there. I would have taken Grealish instead of Bowen."

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Bowen enjoyed another strong season for West Ham, scoring 20 goals and registering 10 assists across the campaign.

Grealish, by comparison, appeared to have slipped down the pecking order under Pep Guardiola at City, registering just three goals and three assists across the campaign and with his future at the Etihad now under some speculation.

Explaing the big-name absences, which also included Tottenham's James Maddison, Southgate stated: "All the players took the news really respectfully. Of course, all players will think they should be in and that's why they are top players.

"They have that self-belief and mindset, but the fact is we have some players who have been playing extremely well in the league all season.

"We just felt other players had stronger seasons particularly in the last six months or so."