IF Gareth Southgate is to stay true to the mantra of his reign in England, he really should call Emile Smith Rowe on Thursday.

The boss of the Three Lions has always conveyed the message that his players must have regular playing time and in good shape to be selected.

Most of the time, he stuck to his word.

Although his last team saw him stay loyal to those who helped him reach last summer’s Euro final, like Jadon Sancho, or those who came close to the final selection of 26 players, like Jesse Lingard.

But if either of this Manchester United pair are called to face Albania and San Marino this month, they will consider themselves very lucky given how little they play for their club at the moment. .

Meanwhile, Smith Rowe has played more minutes than any Arsenal player this season and has been one of the stars of their turnaround.

The 21-year-old has risen to the challenge of becoming one of the Gunners’ favorite men by dedicating himself even more to his craft and accepting marginal gains.

It wasn’t like he was a bad eater before, but this summer he expanded his nutritional knowledge.

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He makes the most of Arsenal chefs’ personalized meals and is extremely aware of what he consumes, with the help of the club which are very progressive and proactive in this area.

Smith Rowe also enjoys his job during the closed season.

He joined Rob Holding, Hector Bellerin, Cedric Soares, Calum Chambers and one of Arsenal’s physiotherapists for what was in effect a “pre-season” with warm-weather training in Portugal before the players took off. are returning to prepare for the new campaign.

He also enjoyed his first proper preseason for a few years which was vital.

Two summers ago he was still suffering from the growing pains that disrupted a loan to RB Leipzig in Germany.

The then teenager suffered from stabbing pains around his groin and hip, which is a common problem for young players with an explosive pace – former gunner Serge Gnabry had the same problem.

Smith Rowe could still play but often felt pain when hitting the ball and the problem had to be dealt with.

Then the last preseason, he injured his shoulder in one of their last friendlies against QPR, which took nine weeks to fully recover.

But this preseason he was injury free and relied on the confidence he gained from a fine ending in the last campaign.

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His body has now matured enough for him to show in the male game the lightning pace that he has often displayed while playing at the youth level.

This is clear from the blazing speed he recorded for the England Under-21 side in Andorra last month to score the winner.

As Curtis Jones received the ball after England 10-a-side cleared a corner, Smith Rowe was seen zooming in from his own half and ran on the ball deep from the Liverpool midfielder before clinically shooting in front of the goalkeeper.

It was the kind of quick movement that would have made the sprint work Smith Rowe did with GB team coach Jonas Tawiah-Dodoo in his day a few years ago all worth it.

Smith Rowe has also made a concerted effort to shoot more this season and be more selfish at times rather than always striving to create for others.

The stats prove it too: last year he averaged 0.81 shots per 90 minutes in the Premier League, this quarter he’s 1.57.

He realizes that many of his more scoring contemporaries are buying more raffle tickets, as they say, such as Jack Grealish (2.02 shots per Premier League 90 last season), Mason Mount (2.55) and Bruno Fernandes (3,19).

Smith Rowe has already been rewarded with three league goals and four in all competitions, all from his last seven games, including Saturday’s 2-0 win at Leicester.

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He and his loved one Bukayo Saka worked hard to finish, as Smith Rowe revealed when he was away with the Under-21s last month.

The Croydon guy said: “Because we’re both young players we have to stay as calm as possible and just focus on the goal.

“We have trained a lot in training, after training and we also get the support of the experienced players on the team, they always help us.”

Great credit goes to Smith Rowe and Saka, who are still only 20, for showing great maturity in resuming Arsenal’s season.

Smith Rowe has forged a strong friendship with new £ 50million man Ben White, but gets along well with the entire Arsenal dressing room, naming Alexandre Lacazette as a close confidant when interviewed by SunSport on the season last.

Of course, there was a scenario that Smith Rowe might not even have been at the club had he accepted one of Aston Villa’s two offers of £ 25million and then £ 30million for him this summer.

Arsenal maintain they were never interested in selling any of their own and Smith Rowe ultimately signed a new five-year contract.

Still, it’s fair to say that Villa’s offers made the player think twice about committing his future with the Gunners.

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But the fact that he has become an integral part of the squad since signing that deal – as well as handing over the No.10 shirt – shows how well Arsenal have kept their promises that he is key to their future. .

As for the England senior’s call date, whether this week or in the future, Smith Rowe should have no problem fitting in.

Arsenal have a number in and around the squad such as White, Saka and Aaron Ramsdale that the playmaker obviously knows well.

But he also has his former teammates with whom he won the Under-17 World Cup in 2017, including former roommate Phil Foden.

Smith Rowe told SunSport in March: “Phil and I have become so close, we’ve had so many tournaments in England together.

“We had a lot of jokes together off the pitch. We used to play table tennis and often be in the game room with England in St George’s Park.

“Even in practice we used to stay behind and kick the ball after practice was over.”

Southgate said Smith Rowe was “very close” to being named to the final team.

The Gunners starlet has only gotten better since then, while others have stagnated or have hardly been involved.

For this reason, he must be ready to join his former pal Foden when the England squad are named on Thursday at 2pm.

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