Who would replace him?
MA: Adam Lallana or Ross Barkley would work well as potential replacements though worth noting that both players are perhaps more akin to a Gerrard of old rather than his more recent usage as a more withdrawn midfielder.
AD: Jack Wilshere is an excellent footballer, but is not the holding player England require in midfield. James Ward-Prowse is the only player comfortable playing as the pivot player going forward, but isn’t yet a regular at club level. His Southampton colleague Jack Cork may be an alternative, if he can force his way into the starting XI beyond Morgan Schneiderlin and Vincent Wanyama.
JC: Nobody is good enough yet. Possibly James Ward-Prowse in the future, but if you think he’s capable of doing a job for England already, you’re deluded.
GH: Wilshere / Henderson in a deeper role, the likes of James Ward-Prowse long term.
SG: England are lucky in the fact that the draw for the qualifiers has been kind to them, meaning they could experiment a little with new players. Somebody like Jack Cork or Fabian Delph could be drafted in slowly with an eye for taking over after the tournament.
Will he actually go?
MA: Yes, he’ll retire soon after he arrives back in the UK, isn’t foolish enough to retire in the middle of a major tournament
AD: I think Gerrard will retire. He’ll be 36 in Euro 2016, and although Andrea Pirlo is still going strong at Juventus and with Italy at 35, the speed and pace about this new England side means the defensive midfielder needs to put in plenty of running – which unfortunately Gerrard may not be able to manage.
JC: No. He’ll stay. Too much pride.
GH: He will go, England are at the start of a new era and I don’t believe Gerrard will have the desire to continue playing with a team of youngsters who are at least four years away from being ready.
SG: I can see him staying with the view to taking some sort of coaching role in the near future.
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