Copy linkFacebookXPinterestEmailShare this article 0Join the conversationFollow usAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleNewsletterSubscribe to our newsletterWhen Jonjo Shelvey was coming up through the ranks at Charlton Athletic, he was touted as a potential England regular.A move to Liverpool as an 18-year-old would follow in 2010, with a full England debut arriving two years later, but he would fail to establish himself as a regular in the Three Lions midfield at that time.Shelvey was knocking on the door again during his time at Newcastle United, going on to play some of the best football of his career during the 2017/18 season, but a call-up for that summers World Cup never came.Pick the ultimate 4-4-2 line-up from players in FourFourTwo's definitive Top 100 ListShelvey on his England careerShelvey would end up winning just six Three Lions caps, with his 2018 World Cup omission particularly galling for him as he looks back at his international career.Yes, 100 per cent I should have won more caps, he told FourFourTwo. Sometimes I didnt deserve them, but other times I did and was overlooked. You may like Peter Crouch on how Jude Bellingham answered his England critics Exclusive: Michail Antonio reflects on how a poor performance delayed his international career Joe Cole discusses why England's Golden Generation failed to reach its potential After helping guide Newcastle to promotion from the Championship in 2016/17, he enjoyed a fruitful first season back in the top flight, but believes his absence from the Three Lions squad that went to Russia that summer stemmed from an incident during his time in the under-21s.I should have been taken to the 2018 World Cup, because that season I had the most assists of any English midfielder when I was at Newcastle, he continues.Get FourFourTwo NewsletterThe best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.I was playing the best football of my career but didnt get a call-up. I think it all stemmed from something that happened with Gareth Southgate a few years earlier. When he got the under 21 job, Id already played for the seniors, but I was still eligible for them.Id just joined Swansea when Southgate gave me a call and said: 'Im not going to bring you because youve just moved clubs and youve got the Europa League qualifiers, so Im going to look at some other players, and I also expect you to be with the senior team.'I was fine with that, but told him if anything changed Id be there for him, because I loved playing for England.Shelvey believes the mixed messages that followed impacted his international future.Then I think he said Id refused to play, he continues. When Roy Hodgson called me up to the senior squad, I remember Stuart Pearce saying on Sky Sports News that I shouldnt have been selected as Id refused to play for the under 21s.When I was at St Georges Park, I went to find Southgate and asked him why hed said that, because Id said I would come. He just said: 'No, no, I didnt say that.' I knew from that moment I wasnt going to play for him.TOPICSEnglandWorld CupJoe MewisSocial Links NavigationFor more than a decade, Joe Mewis has worked in football journalism as a reporter and editor. Mewis has had stints at Mirror Football and LeedsLive among others and worked at FourFourTwo throughout Euro 2024, reporting on the tournament. In addition to his journalist work, Mewis is also the author of four football history books that include times on Leeds United and the England national team. Now working as a digital marketing coordinator at Harrogate Town, too, Mewis counts some of his best career moments as being in the iconic Spygate press conference under Marcelo Bielsa and seeing his beloved Leeds lift the Championship trophy during lockdown.With contributions fromSam Pilger
