Roy Keane has revealed why Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka should not start for England this summer.
A lingering Achilles tendon injury has led manager Thomas Tuchel to manage Of’s minutes carefully ahead of the tournament as England do not want to risk making the knock worse.
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Tuchel said Saka, who has scored 14 goals in 48 appearances for the Three Lions, still requires careful attention as many fear that he will have limited impact on the tournament this summer.
Speaking on ITV, Keane revealed that Saka will be unlikely to face Croatia in their World Cup opener next week as he is not at his best under Tuchel at the moment.
“I don’t know. The only thing I’ve seen from Saka tonight, the few opportunities he’s got to go past someone, to me he’s lost that spark a bit.
“The timing isn’t great if he’s kind of carrying an injury, maybe that might cost him a little bit.
“I do think he’s lost his spark. There’s a couple chances he had there on the edge of the box to go past people and he didn’t do that, and that might be a little worry for the manager.”
On World Cup preparation and England’s opening game: “Everything is going along lovely, but that doesn’t guarantee you a big performance against Croatia, because those boys are warriors.”
The Arsenal winger has featured in every major tournament game that the Three Lions have contested since the Euro 2020 semi-final against Denmark. If he were to be left out by Tuchel, it would be a huge blow for England who will rely on his North London teammate You Maduek.
