Marcus Rashford withdraws from England squad ahead of Euro 2024 qualifiers

Marcus Rashford has been forced to withdraw from England's squad ahead of their upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers.

The 25-year-old Manchester United forward was initially named in Gareth Southgate's 25-man squad alongside club teammates Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw.

But the in-form forward picked up a knock in their FA Cup quarter-final against Fulham on Sunday, and was replaced by Fred in the 83rd minute.

Rashford, who has scored 30 goals in 49 appearances in all competitions this season, will miss qualifiers against Italy, in Naples, on Thursday and at home to Ukraine on Sunday.

According to the Manchester United website, he required treatment after being hurt in the build-up to Aleksandar Mitrovic's opener.

As well as Rashford, England have confirmed that Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount will not report for international duty after picking up an injury.

Chelsea manager Graham Potter admitted he was surprised when Mount was called up to England's latest squad.

“He’s never been available as far as I am aware,” said Potter. “He needed a bit of time for his injury to settle down, which has pretty much ruled him out of England.

“Whether that meant they needed a bit of time to double-check that, I don’t know. I don’t think there is anything untoward at all. But from my selection perspective, he wasn’t available for the weekend.”

An update from the #ThreeLions camp, with three players not reporting and Fraser Forster joining the squad…

— England (@England) March 20, 2023

Newcastle United goalkeeper Nick Pope has also been ruled out, with Spurs shot-stopper Fraser Forster joining the squad as his replacement.

Southgate's picks for the upcoming games against Italy and Ukraine have sparked plenty of debate on social media.

Conor Coady, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Raheem Sterling were all left out, while Reece James, Ben Chilwell and Marc Guehi came back into the international fold.

Arsenal defender Ben White was also excluded, despite his form for Mikel Arteta's league leaders.

Explaining his omission, Southgate said: "With Ben White, it's similar to Trent Alexander-Arnold, really.

"The three boys who are in as right full-backs, we've got them just ahead of those two, we're blessed in that position with the depth of talent.

"It's the hardest position to pick, albeit it's never straightforward criteria and shifting around a little bit on form."