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Gareth Southgate does not want to put a timeframe on Luke Shaw‘s return after the defender was ruled out of Thursday’s Group C match with Denmark.
The left back was named among the substitutes for Sunday’s 1-0 win over Serbia but will be absent from the bench here in Frankfurt. That has raised questions over his involvement at the tournament, after he missed Wednesday’s training session with his England team-mates.
Southgate said: ‘Luke won’t be involved, no. He’s actually on track for where we thought he would be originally. We were hoping a couple of days ago we might accelerate that a little bit, but he needs a bit more volume work.
‘He didn’t train with the rest of the group today, because there are days when he needs to do more than the rest of the group. There are days when he needs to recover when the others are pushing, so he’s still in and out with the others and operating on his own programme as well. We don’t want to put a timeline on it at this moment, but he is progressing well.’
Kieran Trippier will continue at left back and, while Southgate praised the Newcastle man, he is still hopeful of Shaw returning to the team.
Luke Shaw did not train with his England team-mates on the eve of the clash with Denmark
Gareth Southgate has refused to put a timeframe on the defender’s return from injury
‘Luke is an outstanding player, that is why we’ve taken the decision to bring him, although he’s not played for so long and we are hopeful that can be as soon as possible,’ he said.
‘Of course, the balance he gives, the drive he gives, whoever plays with him down that side of the pitch, he gives a different outlet. At the moment, we don’t have him, so we’re adapting.
‘Kieran gave a performance on Sunday which he has so many times for us in big matches. If you speak to any winger who plays in front of him, his communication and the way he talks through the game, it is an enormous help for players. He has different attributes that Luke doesn’t.’