Premier League stars Southgate fears face burnout with Euro 2020 to come

Gareth Southgate fears some his England stars will be knackered by the time the Euros come round this summer.

Players are facing the most demanding season of their careers due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the domestic game.

The England boss has seen a host of them struck down with injuries, including Joe Gomez, Jordan Henderson, Harvey Barnes and James Justin.

He is worried more will follow these onto the treatment table in the coming months to throw his preparations for the tournament into chaos.

Southgate said: "When I look at the squad for March (World Cup qualifiers), we are already without Joe Gomes, Jordan Henderson, Harvey Barnes and James Justin – who we think has been doing exceptionally well at Leicester but is going to be out.

"We have been worried about it all season. We knew a very short break at the end of last season was not the normal preparation – and a condensed season was always going to be challenging for everybody.

"The clubs have tried to manage that the best they can, but it is not the muscle injuries so much as the more serious ones that you get as fatigue sets in.

"Players are playing with existing injuries and there are four or five players we know are out now and we have another five rounds of (league) matches before we play in March.

"In the leagues, the biggest squads are benefiting from that and in the summer we have got to make sure we get the right balance of psychologically refreshing everybody by giving them some time to relax for a few days – and not just going straight into camp and another pressured environment."

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