Cole Palmer has been withdrawn from the England squad, with the Chelsea star one of five players to opt out of international duty for the current international break. As confirmed by the team, Tino Livramento, Kobbie Mainoo, Marcus Rashford, Declan Rice, and Palmer have all been “ruled out […] due to respective injury issues”.
That might sound a bit scary after Palmer’s injury issues all last season, but the real reason, at least according to reports, is simply “load management”. Palmer has played
nearly every minute of every game we’ve had so far this season, so a nice three-week break sounds perfect. As a bonus, he’ll get to spend more time with Xabi Alonso on the training ground — and most of the rest of the team since we don’t have too many international call-ups overall. (With Reece James already withdrawn, we only have Morgan Rogers with the Three Lions, for example.)
We certainly have plenty to work on before the Premier League resumes on October 10!
England have called up only James Garner and Morgan Gibbs-White to replace the quintet of absentees. They will take on Spain, Croatia, and the Czech Republic twice (home and away) in Nations League A play. (Yes, four games in the extended/combined three-week break in this new FIFA calendar.)
