Bukayo Saka will return to full training on Monday and is fit to face Denmark in England’s Euro 2020 semi-final on Wednesday.
The 19-year-old winger emerged as a surprise key player after shining in the third group game, against the Czech Republic, replacing Phil Foden and keeping his place in the last-16 victory against Germany.
Saka was not selected for the quarter-final against Ukraine after picking up “a slight knock” in training, allowing Jadon Sancho to start the game. But he is back in contention for the semi-final, to be played at Wembley in front of 65,000 fans.
“He should be fine,” manager Gareth Southgate said. “He did declare himself available for the [Ukraine] game but we’d not really had the chance to see him on the pitch and working at the level we felt would vindicate that decision.”
Southgate believes England’s run to the last four of successive major tournaments can help the next generation of players – including Saka – to continue at this level. England were knocked out of the semi-finals by Croatia at the last World Cup and on Wednesday will attempt to reach a European Championship final for the first time.
“We’ve knocked off so many hoodoos or perceived barriers already and I feel like this group of players will feel this is just the next challenge,” the England manager said.
“I guess the interesting part for us is we won’t feel totally satisfied if it’s just a semi-final… whereas maybe three years ago although there was massive disappointment after the semi-final there was a feeling we’d come a long way. Now we’ve replicated what we did there, but that won’t be enough to fulfil the group. That’s a positive sign.
“The other thing that is so positive, these young players, 18, 19, 20, 21, they’re getting more experiences of England that are positive and enjoyable and they’re feeling what it can be like to be in an England shirt and have fun and win matches and have a relationship with the fans that is positive.
“That’s so important for a generation to come. We’ll get more out of their talent if we can keep that relationship with the fans.”
More from i on Euro 2020
- Why there have been so many own goals – from tiredness to lazy defending
- England aren’t ‘rubbish’ and Southgate isn’t a ‘fraud’ – we just need a bit of patience
- What the Premier League could learn from Euro 2020’s controversy-free referees
- The football nomad who became a hero for his role in saving Eriksen’s life
- How to watch every Euro 2020 match on TV and online in the UK
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3witUCE
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