Gareth Southgate has provided an update on Chelsea forward Raheem Sterling as he ponders his World Cup team selection.
Sterling recently flew back to England after his house was robbed whilst he was away at the World Cup in Qatar, as reported by Matt Law.
The England international has now flew back to Qatar in time for England’s fixture against France on Saturday, and Southgate has now provided an update on Sterling as he ponders his team selection ahead of their toughest fixture of the tournament.
“We will have to assess that. He has missed a lot of training and had two long flights. That is not good preparation for a game of this standard but let’s see how he is,” said Southgate, as relayed by the Mirror.
It seems that Southgate is hinting that Sterling won’t be available for the game against France, which shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise.
Undoubtedly, Sterling is a key player for England, but the likes of Bukayo Saka and Phil Foden have performed exceptionally in this tournament, and the trauma and distraction that Sterling has faced might mean he’s not in the right frame of mind to play the game.