We have seen during his brief time in Everton’s first team Barkley is such a player, capable of influencing a game in ways others are not.
There is some suggestion that Hodgson is contemplating making a choice between Barkley and Michael Carrick, but this bemuses me. Not because of the merits of taking either player, but because they are entirely different, fulfilling contrasting roles. Carrick would cover for Steven Gerrard in a holding role while Barkley is an attacking midfielder. I do not see how they could be competing head-to-head for the same place.
A more obvious rival for Barkley’s position is Arsenal’s Jack Wilshere, and although it depends on the formation Hodgson goes with, if there was a choice between the Everton and Arsenal man – based on form and fitness this season – it would have to be Barkley.
Barkley scores more, creates more and has more athleticism. You need the legs in international football and he has all the necessary assets, especially in potentially debilitating temperatures where slow, often ponderous games can be elevated by those with an explosive burst of pace and sheer physicality.
If there were any doubt about Barkley’s position in the squad – and I’d be amazed if so – it must have been removed after his performance against Manchester City, watched by Hodgson last week.
It may have been a timely show of class, particularly the superb goal he scored from 25 yards, erasing any misgivings Hodgson may have had when watching the 20-year-old in previous fixtures.
One of my pet hates is when people talk about the inconsistency of young players, as if their moments of brilliance should be put into perspective if they have a poor game a week later.
Barkley was substituted at half-time against Southampton recently – a game Hodgson also watched – but this is something we must expect from our youngsters. This is part of the risk when you put faith in young talent, but it is one you must take in order to realise the rewards.
I have a similar view of Raheem Sterling, who I would also back to excel in Brazil and would have in the starting line-up with Barkley.
Much is made about the psychology of our players going into these tournaments and I speak from experience when I say you are never better prepared mentally for international football than when you break into the side as a teenager.
Psychologically, I was a different player in France ’98 compared to Germany eight years later. There is a fearlessness of youth, a belief you were born to be on that stage and you will deliver your best. You are not battle weary or scarred by any previous experiences.
When I played Argentina as an 18-year-old in France ’98, I did not care who was marking me. I never even gave it a second’s thought before the game and I played that famous game not only believing, but knowing I would perform well and score.
By 2006 in Germany, my approach was entirely different and not necessarily for the better. OK, I was more experienced, but I can recall assessing the opposition before each group game, closely watching their defenders and working out their strengths and weaknesses, worrying if I would be able to get the better of them and so desperate to win, there was that nagging question as to what the reaction would be if we failed.
By and large, experience is an advantage but when you have that balance between older, wiser heads and those youngsters who will play with a freedom and abandon, it is a much more effective combination.
For some, Monday’s squad announcement will be one of the most memorable days of their career and for others one of the worst. It does not matter whether you are Wayne Rooney or Ross Barkley, there is an overwhelming sense of relief when you get that call to say you are in.
I was in the England training camp based in La Manga before the World Cup in 1998, famously recalled for when Glenn Hoddle left out Paul Gascoigne.
I was due to see the manager to learn my fate four or five players after Gazza and my abiding memory is of glancing around the room as I walked in to see how much damage had been done by the distraught Gascoigne. It had been cleared up by then.
By that time I was confident I would be in the squad, but when I heard those words from Hoddle and he told me he did not just see me as a bit-part player but as someone who would have a major role I just could not wait to get out to tell my family and friends the news. It was magical.
Eight years later, Fabio Capello took over, picked me as a substitute for one friendly against France and that was the end of my international career. There were no more phone calls from the England manager. It just ended without as much as a thanks for my contribution. That’s football, a brutal business.
There are England players at different ends of the journey I experienced, Brazil the beginning for some and possibly the end for others.
For the country’s sake, I hope Roy’s focus is very much on those youngsters at the start of their international career who can be established in the squad for many more tournaments to come, with Barkley leading the way.
Michael’s World Cup starting XI (4-2-3-1) Hart; Johnson, Jagielka, Cahill, Baines; Gerrard, Henderson; Sterling, Barkley, Sturridge; Rooney.
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