Yes agree, Winks is a much better option. Also why is Walker omitted from the squad? If Keane is a liability then at least Walker could provide extra cover as part of 3 centre backs. Got to be a better option than Rice who just gets the ball and passes it back to a CB anyway and generally remains pretty static.
We got previous in England national teams for ignoring any deep lying playmaker types or DMs with actual attacking game intelligence. How Carrick got overlooked for years is nothing short of a scandal. At the moment Southgate seems determined to repeat the mistakes of the past.
Have to agree with you re: Walker. He's far from perfect but I think he warrants being the squad, too.
Winks is too limited on the ball for the kind of player he is supposed to be. Virtually every time, when watching Tottenham last season, there was a marked improvement in the team’s play when Eriksen was moved into a deeper role - Winks just doesn’t have the ability to progress the play as well as you would expect from a deep-lying playmaker. He also doesn’t excel defensively like Rice does. Overall, in isolation I think Rice brings more to a team even though he is limited on the ball.
I have criticised Winks a lot myself as, when in possession, he takes the easy choice everytime. Rarely attempts long passes, through balls, etc, when they're on, which isn't ideal, true, but the positives he does bring to the midfield like being able to resist a press, and adding some composure to the team when trying to play it out from the back are something Rice doesn't have which, if we're going to be a possession based team and attempt playing it out from the back, are key attributes to have.
I also don't think it's that Winks is limited on the ball - I feel like it's a confidence thing as I've seen him play good balls before, so he has it in his locker. I mean, I know I'm grasping at straws here, but it does feel like a mental/confidence thing rather than a lack of technical ability to me in regards to Winks' problem.