October 09,(THEWILL) – England Manager, Gareth Southgate, will be without Arsenal winger, Bukayo Saka, ahead of the upcoming international break, with the 22-year-old withdrawing from the squad due to injury. Saka picked up the knock during Arsenal’s UEFA Champions League match against Lens last week.
There were hopes that Saka could recover in time for the matches against Australia and Italy after Arsenal boss, Mikel Arteta, suggested he could be fit to face Manchester City. However, Saka was left out of the squad for the English Premier League clash, which Arsenal won 1-0.
After the match, Arteta confirmed Saka would not link up with England, saying “He has not trained for a single session. He is not available to play football at the moment.” The FA were still expecting Saka to arrive for assessment, but have now confirmed he has returned to Arsenal after their own medical checks.
England will have to cope without one of their star attackers for the two matches. Manager Southgate will likely look to the likes of Jarrod Bowen and Phil Foden to provide a threat from the right flank instead of Saka.
The absence of Saka is a disappointment for England as they look to maintain their dominance in Group C of the Euro qualifying series. The Gunners will be hoping the talented forward makes a swift return to action following the international break.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
