England manager Gareth Southgate has suggested that he has no intention of selecting Chelsea midfielder Ross Barkley as part of his squad for the World Cup.
The 24-year-old, who joined the Blues from boyhood club Everton at the start of 2018, has featured just once in the Premier League this term.
Barkley has struggled with an injury problem over the past year, explaining his lack of minutes for both the Toffees and Chelsea, and Southgate has all but ruled out picking the midfielder for this summer's finals.
Speaking to reporters earlier this week, Southgate said: "I think Ross has just not been fit. He went to Chelsea on the back of a long-term injury, quite a serious one, and only had a couple of matches really.
"So I don't think he's available for selection now anyway, so he's unfortunate in the way that has played out in this year in particular. But if he can get back playing and playing regularly I'm sure, post-summer... It's going to be difficult for him I think to get the number of games he needs now. But we know he's a talented player."
Southgate also hinted that Barkley's clubmate Danny Drinkwater is another player who will unlikely feature in his plans this side of Russia 2018.
Daniel Lewis
