Myles Lewis-Skelly won’t be in the England squad for Tuesday’s game against Serbia, but the defender isn’t believed to have an injury problem.
Simon Collings reports for Standard Sport that Myles Lewis-Skelly has been left out of the England squad to face Serbia on Tuesday night, but adds that Thomas Tuchel confirmed on Monday that everyone is fit.
Rather than injury, Lewis-Skelly is a victim of the fact that only 23 players can be named in each matchday squad for internationals like these.
England have 24 players in their squad for the break at the moment, meaning Jarell Quansah had to miss out against Andorra, and now Lewis-Skelly has to miss out against Serbia.
Lewis-Skelly already completed a full 90-minute match against Andorra, so arguably he’s had the ideal break from an Arsenal perspective.
He’s played one match to keep him sharp, he didn’t suffer an injury setback, and he’ll have a full week of rest before the Gunners’ next game.
With Lewis-Skelly out, presumably Declan Rice, Eberechi Eze, and Noni Madueke are all in the squad, though it remains to be seen what role the three of them play on Tuesday evening.
England currently lead their World Cup qualification group with four wins from four games, but Serbia are their closest opponents – five points behind.
Should Serbia beat England on Tuesday, they’d then close the gap to just two points, with an extra game in hand to potentially overtake Tuchel’s side.
England will be looking for at least a point away in Belgrade, and ideally the full three to put them in a great position ahead of the next couple of breaks.