Harry Maguire returned to training with England on Thursday morning, raising the prospect that he will play a part at Euro 2020.
The Manchester United defender is expected to miss Sunday’s Group D opener against Croatia as he recovers from the ankle ligament injury he sustained at Aston Villa last month.
But his return to training with other 25 members of the England squad at St George's Park is encouraging for Gareth Southgate, who has said previously that any contribution from Maguire at the tournament would be “a bonus”.
Southgate has admitted that he may have struggled to justify including Maguire and Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson, who is just back from a three-month absence, had Uefa not expanded the permitted squad size for the tournament from 23 to 26.
It remains to be seen how far away Magure is from fitness and whether he will be able to feature in the group stage.
But the sight of him training with the rest of the England squad is a welcome boost for Southgate ahead of the start of Euro 2020.
