Why Bukayo Saka Isn’t Playing for England vs. Andorra | OneFootball

Bukayo Saka was left out of Thomas Tuchel’s England squad for their World Cup qualifier match against Andorra on Saturday amid fitness concerns.

Tuchel revealed the Arsenal star only completed one full training session ahead of the match. “He came into camp with a little bit of discomfort from the last match against Southampton, so we took care of him and treated him individually until today basically,” the manager said Friday ahead of the game.

The injury isn’t believed to be serious as Tuchel followed up that Saka should be available for their international friendly against Senegal on Tuesday, June 10. Saka’s Arsenal teammates, Declan Rice and Myles Lewis-Skelly, are expected to feature against Andorra.

Saka, who has 43 England caps, has yet to appear for a Tuchel-led Three Lions. After suffering a hamstring injury against Crystal Palace in a Premier League match on Dec. 21, Saka missed three months of action before returning ahead of their Champions League quarterfinal tie against Real Madrid. The winger featured prominently throughout the rest of the season in starting and substitute roles.

Given his rapid return from such an injury, fans might’ve preferred to hear he would be given a full summer off to rest and recover. Instead, the plan appears to be to manage his fitness and minutes given the upcoming friendly.

This is just the second international camp for Tuchel as England boss. He’d prefer to get a look at Saka in his system, but he knows him well as an opposition manager after facing the winger as Chelsea and Bayern Munich boss.

Saka isn’t the only player missing out this weekend. Atlético Madrid midfielder Conor Gallagher and Aston Villa forward Ollie Watkins were also left out of the matchday squad. Watkins left camp completely with a minor injury while Gallagher’s omission has yet to be explained by the manager.

England’s World Cup qualifying match against Andorra kicks off Saturday, June 7 at 12 p.m. ET (5 p.m. BST).