05 October 2023 , 21:30
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England boss Gareth Southgate has insisted he will not take a “risk” on Bukayo Saka ’s fitness.
Southgate included Saka in his 26 man squad to face Australia and Italy and expects him to report up even though he could miss Arsenal ’s title showdown with Manchester City on Sunday.
That could put England on a potential collision course with Arsenal who are desperate for the 22-year-old to be given a rest as he is currently nursing Achilles, thigh and a hamstring issue which forced him to limp out of their Champions League defeat in Lens on Tuesday.
But Southgate was adamant that he needs Saka for the Wembley double header as they face Australia in a friendly and then a Euros qualifier with Italy when they could clinch their place in next summer’s finals.
Southgate said: “I’ve been a player and I’ve never ever taken a risk on a player’s physical well being. And nor would I. I can only go via what Mikel Arteta has said about the last few games.
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"He is in contention for the weekend so we’ve obviously got a very important qualifier. We look after the players as well as any country.
“We have really good dialogue with all of their clubs, I think they pretty much all would agree that we probably give better feedback than every other nation. They have trust in us that we make decisions that are right for the long-term whenever we can.
Bukayo Saka was injured during Arsenal's Champions League defeat to Lens (Getty Images)Was Southgate right to include Bukayo Saka in the latest England squad? Share your thoughts in the comments below
“We only have ten matches a year. And there’s been times when with Bukayo, for example, we haven’t always played him. But there are certain key games where if it’s possible to have your best players then you do want to have them.”
There were England recalls for Ollie Watkins and Jarrod Bowen but no way back for Raheem Sterling who missed out last time. Southgate has also been highly critical of FIFA’s plan to stage the 2030 World Cup across six countries and three continents with three Group matches being played in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay while the main tournament is hosted in Spain, Portugal and Morocco.
Southgate added: “I don't quite get the integrity of the competition. My understanding is three matches played in South America, then those teams have to travel across the globe, change time zones again. That would seem quite disjointed and different landscape. From what I’ve seen, I’m not a fan.”