Bukayo Saka has been left out of the England squad for their 2026 World Cup qualifier against Andorra.
The Arsenal star will join Atletico Madrid midfielder Conor Gallagher and Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins as the Three Lions’ absentees for tonight’s clash, which is live on talkSPORT.
GettyBukayo Saka will not be able to add to his 43 England caps against Andorra[/caption]While Watkins has returned home after picking up a minor injury, it remains to be seen whether Saka will feature in the friendly against Senegal on 10 June.
The 23-year-old’s absence is most likely linked to fitness, with England boss Thomas Tuchel revealing on Friday that he had only completed one full training session this week.
His omission means he will now have to wait slightly longer for his first international appearance under Tuchel.
Despite being a mainstay in the Three Lions starting XI under Gareth Southgate, Saka was unavailable for selection for the German’s first games in charge in March.
The winger had been continuing his recovery from a hamstring injury that saw him sidelined for more than three months.
His last international appearance came in England’s 2-1 defeat to Greece in the Nations League, under interim boss Lee Carsley.
When discussing Saka’s availability ahead of this evening’s match, Tuchel revealed he was still struggling with a knock he picked up in Arsenal‘s final Premier League game against Southampton.
Speaking on Friday, he 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.”
Despite his fitness concerns, Tuchel insisted Saka will be a key player in his England squad going forward, as he hailed his impact for club and country.
GettyThomas Tuchel won his first two England games in charge against Latvia and Albania without the help of Saka[/caption] The Arsenal star was a key player in England’s run to the final at Euro 2024GettyThe 51-year-old continued: “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.”
Tuchel also praised Saka’s mentality and consistency, highlighting how well he bounced back from his heartbreaking penalty miss in England’s Euro 2020 final defeat to Italy.
He added: “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.
Despite missing three months of the season through injury, Saka still managed to register 12 goals and 14 assists for Arsenal last termGetty“He was decisive for England, he took responsibility, he bounced back after kind of decisive and dramatic penalty miss.
“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.”
Since making his England debut against Wales in 2020, Saka has gone on to win 43 caps for his country, scoring 12 times.
Tuchel’s side will look to continue their perfect start to their World Cup qualifying campaign without the help of Saka at the RCDE Stadium tonight.
England have faced Andorra on six occasions dating back to 2006, winning all six games with an aggregate scoreline of 26-0.
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