Harry Kane has been given the green light to play for England following an injury scare but Ezri Konsa, Kobbie Mainoo and Morgan Gibbs-White have been ruled out of Nations League action.
The England captain limped off and was substituted in the 72nd minute of Bayern Munich’s 3-3 draw at Eintracht Frankfurt, moments after requiring treatment following a clash with the Brazilian defender Tuta. Kane travelled directly to St George’s Park and, after being examined by Football Association doctors, the 31-year-old striker is in line to play against Greece on Thursday and Finland on Sunday.
A Bayern statement read: “The examination by the England football team medical staff has shown that Harry Kane does not have a structural injury. The FC Bayern striker, who was substituted in the Bundesliga match at Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday evening, will therefore remain with the England squad for the upcoming internationals.”
This is the second injury worry Kane has faced in recent weeks after he was a major doubt to take on Aston Villa last Wednesday following an ankle issue in a 1-1 draw with Bayer Leverkusen. Kane is one of three centre-forwards in the squad alongside Ollie Watkins and Dominic Solanke – who returns to the international setup after seven years - for England’s fixture against Greece at Wembley before a trip to Helsinki to face Finland.
The England interim head coach, Lee Carsley, has elected against drafting in any replacements after the FA confirmed Konsa, Mainoo and Gibbs-White have all withdrawn from international duty due to injury.
“The trio all sustained injuries for their respective clubs over the weekend and have been ruled out of the Three Lions’ Uefa Nations League fixtures against Greece and Finland,” an FA statement read. “All other 22 players are at St George’s Park with no further additions planned at this time.”
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Defender Konsa started in England’s most recent outing - a 2-0 home win over Finland – while Mainoo played 77 minutes in Carsley’s first match in charge – a 2-0 triumph over the Republic of Ireland in Dublin. On Monday, Manchester United released a statement saying Mainoo has been “managing an issue” since being forced out with injury in the defeat by Tottenham last month, although he did subsequently play in the draw with Aston Villa.