Hugely important England player misses training in blow for Gareth Southgate ahead of Euro 2024 opener

Gareth Southgate has been dealt a major blow ahead of England's Euro 2024 opener on Sunday.

The England camp are in Germany as they prepare to open their Euro 2024 campaign against Serbia.

On Wednesday, the team went through their paces in a training session at their Germany base.

However, one hugely important player missed today's training session.

According to the FA, John Stones missed England training through illness.

The #ThreeLions squad is out at training this morning, except John Stones who misses out through illness. pic.twitter.com/o4cevMbxmu

— England (@England) June 12, 2024

The Manchester City defender trained on Tuesday amid an ankle issue.

But he's missed his national team's latest training session ahead of their Group C clash against Serbia.

Stones made 28 appearances across all competitions for Man City last season in an injury-hit campaign.

He played 16 times in the Premier League, having suffered a hamstring problem in February.

If the 30-year-old is unable to play against Serbia, then Southgate could turn to Brighton's Lewis Dunk alongside Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi, who started both of England's friendlies in preparation for the summer tournament.

Dunk started against Bosnia and Herzegovina while Stones started against Iceland.

Aston Villa's Ezri Konsa and Liverpool's Joe Gomez are among his other defensive options.

Stones isn't the only injury worry as Luke Shaw faces a race to be fit, having not featured in a game since February.

The Manchester United defender played just 15 games in all competitions last season.

Despite his lack of game time, Southgate named him in his final 26-man squad for the Euros.

Shaw is the only specialist left-back in the England party.

The Three Lions take on Serbia on Sunday before facing Denmark on June 20 and Slovenia on June 25.