Is Southgate strengthening the national team of DR Congo?

Gareth Southgate presented the team for the Euro 2020 and for the World Cup Qualifiers and on that list, we do not see two players who, due to Southgate's decision, are on the verge of changing their decision on which flag should they represent. Two 23-year-olds, Man Utd's Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Aston Villa's Ezri Konsa might decide to play under the crest of the Congolese national team.

Wan-Bissaka joined Manchester United from Crystal Palace in 2019 and has established himself as a defensive force at the back. But England manager Southgate missed adding Wan-Bissaka to the list in the last two call-ups.

The first time, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Reece James and Kieran Trippier were selected before Wan-Bissaka while for the latest call up we can see the names of Ben Chilwell, Kyle Walker, Luke Shaw, and again Reece James and Kieran Trippier.

In response to the first time he was neglected, Wan-Bissaka has removed the England flag from his social media bio last October and left the DR Congo flag in. He has represented both countries at the youth level and having not made a full international debut, Wan-Bissaka can still play for either side.

Konsa & Wan-Bissaka on the left, playing for England's youth team (©Soccrates Images)

As far as Konsa goes, fans reckon he has been 'robbed of a spot in the England team following his stellar performances for Aston Villa in the Premier League.

He was backed to make the team after forging a rock-solid center-back partnership with Tyrone Mings - but Gareth Southgate has left out Konsa, naming Conor Coady, Eric Dier, Harry Maguire, John Stones and the mentioned Mings instead.

If Konsa wants to pursue an international career, he could opt to switch nationalities with the defender qualifying for the Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola through his parents, according to Birmingham Mail.

And he could even play for Portugal and line up alongside Pepe and Cristiano Ronaldo, among other Portuguese stars, as he qualifies for citizenship.

Konsa appeared to be in line to receive his first senior call-up after helping his team register an impressive 14 clean sheets this season. He has represented the Three Lions at youth level, playing five games for England under-20s and seven games for England under-21s.

Last week, Villa boss Dean Smith spoke glowingly about Konsa.

"Yeah, he's a top player. He's not anywhere near his ceiling yet, he's got so much potential," he said. "Defensively he's been as steady as they come. He doesn't give any change to any center-forward in this league and he'll just keep getting better and better."

What are your thoughts on the possibility of these and other players of African descent playing for the countries of their ancestors?