England have continued their World Cup preparations ahead of Tuesday’s Group L fixture against Ghana, though Bukayo Saka trained separately from the rest of the squad.
The Arsenal winger was the only one of Thomas Tuchel’s 26 players not involved in group training at Swope Soccer Village in Kansas City.
Saka instead spent Saturday’s session indoors working on an individual programme as he manages an Achilles issue that has been tracked since March.
England face Ghana in Boston on Tuesday at 21:00 BST, with both sides having begun Group L with opening victories.
Tuchel was present on the training pitch alongside 25 of his 26 players, with baseball teams the KC Royals and St Louis Cardinals watching on after the two sides had played the previous Friday night.
Saka came off the bench during England’s 4-2 win over Croatia on Wednesday, providing an assist for Marcus Rashford’s goal, England’s fourth of the game.
Ahead of the tournament, Tuchel had already flagged that Saka would need to be carefully managed through the early stages, with the condition understood to be Achilles tendinitis.
The 24-year-old himself has insisted he is ready to contribute and said he was willing to “gamble” on his fitness in order to help England during the World Cup.
Despite that determination, Tuchel has indicated Saka is unlikely to start before England’s final Group L match against Panama in New Jersey on Saturday, 27 June at 22:00 BST.
“Bukayo is ready and will get more and more ready,” Tuchel said. “I think once we go to the last game of this group he will be ready.”
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has consistently been guarded over the issue, largely keeping information about Saka’s condition private throughout the season.
Saka did feature regularly for Arsenal during their title run-in, with the club judging him fit enough to start despite concerns held behind the scenes at the Emirates.
Tuchel’s willingness to discuss the issue publicly has brought Saka’s fitness situation into far sharper focus heading into the Ghana game.
The German head coach appears to be protecting his winger for the knockout rounds, though Saka could still be called upon to start against Ghana if circumstances demand it.
