Jude Bellingham and Levi Colwill have opted out of the England squad ahead of the Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia due to shoulder injuries.
The absence of Real Madrid’s Bellingham and Chelsea’s Colwill brings the total to five players who have withdrawn from Gareth Southgate’s original squad for the matches scheduled on November 17 and 20.
To fill the gaps left by the injured James Maddison, Callum Wilson, and Lewis Dunk, Cole Palmer, Ezri Konsa, and Rico Lewis were called up on Monday.
In addition, Marcus Rashford of Manchester United and Kalvin Phillips of Manchester City will join the squad later in the week for personal reasons.
Despite the setbacks, Southgate has decided not to make any further additions to the squad for the upcoming matches at Wembley against Malta on Friday and the away fixture in North Macedonia on Monday.
England has already secured qualification for the European Championship next summer, and a single victory in the remaining qualifiers would guarantee their position at the top of Group C, securing them as one of the top seeds in the competition hosted by Germany.
