Jadon Sancho a doubt for England’s World Cup qualifier against Hungary

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England manager Gareth Southgate has confirmed that Jadon Sancho is a doubt to face Hungary in Thursday’s World Cup qualifier, with his minor injury to be assessed prior to kick-off.

Having completed a long-awaited move to Manchester United earlier in the summer, the 21-year-old joined up with his England teammates this week for an international triple header.

Jadon SanchoJadon Sancho

Sancho picked up a knock on Wednesday morning / Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images

He was expected to play some part for the Three Lions on international duty, as England face Hungary, Andorra and Poland in their qualification campaign for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

But England coach Southgate has admitted that Sancho’s participation has been thrown into doubt, after the winger picked up a knock in training. He will have to be assessed ahead of the clash with Hungary, to see whether he stands any chance of making the squad.

„We’ve got a small knock with Jadon this morning, so we’re going to assess him,“ Southgate said on Wednesday, the day before facing Hungary. „Everybody else is fine for the game.“

England take on Hungary at the Puskas Arena on Thursday night, making their first appearance as a team since the heartbreaking penalty shootout defeat to Italy in the Euro 2020 final.

The players were largely celebrated for their efforts by supporters, but some received a barrage of abuse, and in the case of Marcus Rashford, Sancho and Bukayo Saka, racial abuse. The trio were targeted after missing penalties for the Three Lions, and Southgate was keen to address that topic.

When asked about his England players taking to the field in a country which has been sanctioned for discriminatory abuse by fans, the coach reminded everyone of his own nation’s issues with racial abuse, and stated that England ‚must get our own things correct‘.

„We know we’ve had our own issues at home so we are not really focused on other countries, we are focused on ourselves and making sure we get our own things correct.“

UEFA also took disciplinary action against the English FA in the aftermath of the Euro 2020 final, following a series of embarrassing and dangerous incidents involving England supporters in and around Wembley stadium.