UEFA have confirmed the planned changes to the squads taking part in the European Championships this summer, which is good news for Bukayo Saka.
UEFA have now confirmed that Euro 2020 squads will increase from 23 players to 26. In the actual matches, they’ll stick with a 12-man substitutes bench, meaning three players will sit in the stands in every game.
The additional players allowed will help guard against the consequences of an outbreak during the tournament. UEFA won’t want the tournament suspended midway through because certain teams don’t have enough players to complete their fixtures.
It probably won’t affect the likes of Granit Xhaka, Kieran Tierney, and Bernd Leno, who were all pretty much certain to make their national team squads anyway. But it could be good news for Bukayo Saka, who you’d imagine was on the fringes for England.
Saka made it into Gareth Southgate’s last three squads, but he was unfit to accept his call-up over the March break. That raised concerns that his four England caps may not be enough to get him in.
There’s also Cedric Soares, Dani Ceballos, Hector Bellerin, and Ainsley Maitland-Niles, none of whom were likely to make the 23-man squad, but could have an outside chance with the extra places available. Good luck to all of them.