England will be without several senior players for their second UEFA Nations League match against Czechia at the Fortuna Arena in Prague, with five players having withdrawn from the squad.
Thomas Tuchel's side lost their opening match at home to Spain on Saturday after Harry Kane missed a penalty and Mikel Oyarzabal scored the winner 15 minutes from time. Czechia also lost their first game, at home to Croatia.
Declan Rice and Marcus Rashford pull out
Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice has withdrawn from the squad and will play no part in any of the four international matches in the current break. His absence is understood to be for load management reasons rather than any new injury. It is the first time he has missed competitive action for England since 2024, when a toe injury kept him out of Nations League matches against Greece and Ireland.
Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford has been managing a hip issue, prompting him to withdraw. The 28-year-old has featured in all of his club's league games this season but has yet to complete a full 90 minutes. His United team-mate Kobbie Mainoo has also pulled out of the squad for the September and October internationals.
Cole Palmer's muscular injury and Tuchel's concern
Chelsea star Cole Palmer has been struggling with a muscular injury and returned to his club, but England boss Tuchel expressed concern at the number of times he has pulled out of squads. "He misses too many opportunities, he misses way too many camps with injuries. It's not his fault," the German said.
Rice, Rashford, Mainoo and Palmer are four of the five players to drop out, with Newcastle defender Tino Livramento also forced to leave the camp. Livramento previously pulled out of England's World Cup squad with injury. Tuchel made only two additions to make up for the five withdrawals, bringing in James Garner and Morgan Gibbs-White, with both coming off the bench in the Spain match.
Kick-off time and how to watch
Czechia vs England will kick off at 7.45pm UK time at the Fortuna Arena in Prague. Fans in England can watch live on ITV1 or ITVX, with pre-match build-up beginning at 7pm. The teams have met five times in the past with three wins for England, one win for Czechia and one draw. Most recently, England won 1-0 in the Euro 2020 group stage with Raheem Sterling scoring the only goal of the game.
