England manager Gareth Southgate has revealed that winger Bukayo Saka may not be fit to face Ukraine on Saturday after picking up a knock in training.
The Arsenal youngster has enjoyed an excellent Euro 2020 so far, impressing in his two appearances against the Czech Republic and Germany.
Saka had been expected to continue his run of starts on Saturday when England travel to Rome to face Ukraine, but Southgate confessed that he will have to make a late call on the 19-year-old’s fitness before the match.
“We’ve just got to check on Bukayo, who had a slight knock today,” the boss said via Sky Sports News.
“Other than that, everybody is available.”
A potential injury for Saka could open the door for soon-to-be Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho, who is surprisingly still waiting for double digit minutes in the competition.
Alongside Sancho, Southgate can also choose from Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Mason Mount or Marcus Rashford, with Raheem Sterling expected to keep his spot on the left after his run of three goals in four games this summer.
“I’ve said all along it’s impossible to keep everyone happy, to pick a team everybody will agree with,” Southgate continued. “But we’ve got to pick the right players for the right moments, to sense what will cause the opposition the most problems, physically where all the players are at, when is the best time for them to have an impact.
“They’ve all been unbelievably respectful of their team-mates and the fact we have got this strength in depth.
“Raheem has been on fire. His goals have made it more difficult for some others to get in on that left side.”
England go into Saturday’s game as favourites to progress to the semi-final, where either Denmark or the Czech Republic will be waiting.