England face Andorra in a World Cup qualifying match on Saturday but may have to be without Arsenal star Bukayo Saka as he recovers from injury
Bukayo Saka
Bukayo Saka is injured and could miss England's clash with Andorra
Bukayo Saka is a fitness worry for England after missing training in the build-up to the World Cup qualifier with Andorra.
England boss Thomas Tuchel revealed Arsenal star Saka only completed one full session after picking up a knock before the training camp. But Tuchel insisted that Saka has a huge future with England in the long term after picking him out as a standout player for club and country.
Saka missed a huge chunk of last season after undergoing hamstring surgery which ruled him out of Tuchel’s first squad. Tuchel said: “He came into camp with a little bit of discomfort from the last match against Southampton, so we took care of him and treated him individually until today basically.
“It was the first training session that he started and finished with the group. Yesterday, he started with the group but did not finish with the group, so let's see.
READ MORE: Arsenal keen to tie down second top star after Gabriel pens new contractREAD MORE: Ranking Premier League clubs most likely to be in PSR trouble as Man Utd spend big
“I'm not sure if we take the risk for tomorrow's game. The decision has not been taken, but he will be available for the Senegal match, and he plays a major role in our thoughts how to build a competitive team.
“I think just that he grew in his personality with every season that he played so consistently for his club, and the club grew with him and became so competitive. He was just a driver in all this development at Arsenal - one of the key players, one of the main drivers of this competitiveness.
“Until his latest injury he was more or less always available, always playable every three days. He had this consistency in his game and in his body, which made him very unique. He was decisive for England, he took responsibility, he bounced back after kind of decisive and dramatic penalty miss.
Bukayo Saka during an England training session
Saka has only completed one full England training session(Image: Eddie Keogh/The FA)
“It's nice to see that he's back because he wanted to be back, and you straight away see when he comes in that he is comfortable to be with the squad, he knows what it takes to be a national player.”
Ollie Watkins has pulled out of the England squad through injury. Aston Villa striker Watkins will sit out the World Cup qualifying match with Andorra on Saturday and the friendly with Senegal next week.
Tuchel has no plans to call up a replacement and England will prepare for both games with a 25 man squad.
Join our new WhatsApp communityand receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.