England manager Thomas Tuchel has suggested Bukayo Saka is unlikely to start against Ghana as the Arsenal winger continues to recover from an Achilles injury.
Saka has been carefully managed since arriving at the World Cup and trained separately from the rest of the England squad on Saturday ahead of Tuesday’s Group L showdown in Boston.
Although the winger came off the bench to provide an assist in England’s 4-2 victory over Croatia, Tuchel indicated he is planning to ease the 24-year-old through the group stage.
“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.”
Saka has been dealing with Achilles tendinitis since March, but insisted before the tournament that he was prepared to “gamble” on his fitness to help England.
Tuchel, however, appears determined not to rush one of his key attacking players, with the Three Lions targeting a deep run at the tournament.
England face Ghana knowing another victory would secure qualification for the Round of 32, while the Black Stars are looking to build on their dramatic 1-0 win over Panama in their opening match.
