London, Oct 13 (UNI) England striker Ollie Watkins has been ruled out of Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier against Latvia due to injury.
The 29-year-old was substituted at half-time during England’s 3-0 victory over Wales at Wembley, having earlier scored his team’s second goal. Watkins collided with the post late in the first half after missing a chance and did not return for the second period.
Although manager Thomas Tuchel initially said the Aston Villa forward was “OK,” Watkins has since returned to his club and will miss the trip to Riga.
A win against Latvia would see the Three Lions secure qualification for next summer’s World Cup with two games to spare.
Captain Harry Kane, who missed the Wales match, is expected to return. The Bayern Munich striker trained with the squad at Tottenham’s training ground on Monday, and Tuchel said he was “convinced” Kane would be available.
With Watkins sidelined, Anthony Gordon could once again move into a central role after impressing there in the second half against Wales. Marcus Rashford, currently on loan at Barcelona, is another option. The Manchester United owned player prefers to play from the left but has experience leading the line and has 18 goals for England, second only to Kane in the current squad.
