Gareth Southgate has explained why Jadon Sancho has yet to feature for England at Euro 2020.
Sancho, 21, has cemented his status as one of the most exciting attacking talents in the world since joining Borussia Dortmund and is said to be a prime target for Manchester United during this transfer window.
The hope from fans was that he’d play a substantial role for the Three Lions during this summer’s tournament but after two games, he still hasn’t played a single minute of Euros action.
Southgate explains Sancho absence
He was on the bench against Scotland but for the Croatia opener, he was left out of the squad altogether. Prior to the tournament, he had been struggling with illness, limiting his game time during England’s warm-up fixtures.
In preparation for his side’s final group stage clash, England boss Gareth Southgate was asked about Sancho and whether or not we can expect to see him moving forward.
“We’ve got some explosive options and a lot of them are young players and experiencing a big tournament for the first time.” He explained.
“So as a coaching staff we are realistic about our expectations of them as individuals.
“Jadon is in that mix. He’s trained well the last few days and of course we have got those options and those decisions to make.”
Southgate, moreso than most, will be well aware of what a player like Jadon Sancho can bring to the table – which is why his absence up to this point has felt strange to many supporters.
England do have a plethora of high-quality attacking options, though have only managed one goal in their first two games of the competition. The Scotland stalemate in particular saw frustrations rise among fans.
Whatever the reasoning for Sancho’s lack of game time, it’ll be interesting to see whether or not he gets any minutes tomorrow night when England take on Czech Republic in their final game in Group D.
Featured image credit: Getty
