Gareth Southgate is facing a nervous waiting game with England due to fly to Qatar on Tuesday, November 15.
The clock is ticking for the likes of Reece James, Kalvin Phillips and Kyle Walker who are three key fitness doubts for the squad. England boss Southgate will name his 26-man squad for the World Cup on Thursday, November 10, with the first game against Iran 11 days later.
But it now means that every little knock or player needing treatment sets the alarm bells ringing as effectively they only have two weeks to be ready for Qatar. That is what set the alarm bells ringing as soon as Bukayo Saka went down in Arsenal ’s thumping win over Nottingham Forest on Sunday.
Southgate has been critical of having to name big squads in the past but FIFA will allow national teams to name all the substitutes on the bench. And being able to name 26 rather than 23, will also give international bosses some wriggle room and that may give James and Walker fresh hope of being on the plane.
Southgate may decide to use the extra three places to give players additional time to prove their fitness and, while he is unlikely to make the mistakes of previous bosses by taking half-fit players, they may be able to put Walker in should he prove he is on the road to recovery.
Chelsea defender James insists he is not giving up on being fit for the World Cup despite suffering a knee injury in the Champions League earlier this month. James has been forced to wear a brace on his right knee but is a crucial player for both Chelsea and England, almost certainly Southgate’s first choice at right wing back and ahead of Kieran Trippier and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
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It seems unlikely that Southgate will be able to call on him for the first Group matches but England did wait on Harry Maguire in last year’s Euros - and it reaped rewards as the Manchester United defender then played a key role later in the tournament.
Walker was also a first choice but on the right of the back three and he is further down the line than James in terms of recovery and Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola insists he is “optimistic” after the defender underwent groin surgery.
Phillips is also coming back after shoulder surgery and is close to a return but his biggest obstacle may be a lack of minutes and game time since his move to the Etihad last summer. Phillips was a guaranteed starter in the Euros but now faces a major battle with Jude Bellingham to play alongside Declan Rice in the World Cup.
