Foden, Palmer, Watkins withdraw from England squad for Nations League fixtures

LONDON — England’s preparations for their upcoming Nations League fixtures have been thrown into disarray with the withdrawal of key players Phil Foden, Cole Palmer, and Ollie Watkins.

The squad reported to St. George’s Park on Tuesday but, following assessment, both Palmer and Watkins returned to their clubs to continue rehabilitation for ongoing issues.

Palmer has now left the England camp and will return to Cobham to continue rehabilitation for ongoing issues for the remainder of this international break.

Foden, however, did not report through illness and therefore ruled out of the matches against Republic of Ireland and Finland, England Football Association said in a statement.

England is set to face the Ireland in Dublin on September 7 before hosting Finland at Wembley on September 10. These matches mark England’s first competitive outings since the departure of Gareth Southgate, who resigned following the team’s loss to Spain in the Euro 2024 final.

With Southgate’s exit, the England Under-21s boss Lee Carsley was appointed as interim manager. Carsley has used this opportunity to refresh the squad, including several new faces.

Among the call-ups are Angel Gomes, Tino Livramento, Morgan Gibbs-White, and Noni Madueke. All four players previously featured under Carsley during his tenure with the England Under-21s.

In addition to the new call-ups, Manchester City playmaker Jack Grealish and Manchester United defender Harry Maguire have been recalled to the squad.