MIKEL ARTETA says he will send a scan of Bukayo Saka’s injury to anyone claiming the winger was fit for England duty.
Three Lions skipper Harry Kane questioned the commitment of some players after Saka and eight others withdrew from the latest squad.
GettyMikel Arteta has hit back at critics of Bukayo Saka after he withdrew from England duty with injury[/caption]
Saka scored in Arsenal’s 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest on SaturdayGetty
Saka scored for Arsenal on Saturday after recovering from his thigh injury.
Boss Arteta said: “We can send them the MRI scan, it’s very simple.”
Saka scored one and made one in the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest.
Arteta added: “The communication was very clear between the medical staff of Arsenal and the national team.
“He needed time to heal. He has done one training session.”
Saka and club-mate Declan Rice were named in Lee Carsley’s original 26-man squad for the Nations League games against Greece and the Republic of Ireland.
Both had come off in the 1-1 draw at Chelsea.
Arsenal sent Saka for a scan and the results were shared with England’s medical team who said the player should remain with the Gunners for treatment.
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Rice pulled out as he was playing with a broken toe.
Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill also withdrew, as did Manchester City’s Jack Grealish and Phil Foden, plus Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite — those five all played for their clubs yesterday.
Southampton’s Aaron Ramsdale (finger) and Trent Alexander-Arnold (thigh) of Liverpool also called off Three Lions duty.
Kane, who was himself carrying a knock, did not hide his disappointment.
He had said: “England comes before anything. It comes before club.”
Palmer, 22, played 90 minutes before and after the international break.
But his Blues boss Enzo Maresca denies Chelsea are pressuring him to put club before country.
He snapped: “Absolutely not. I’m not thinking about Harry Kane, or what he’s saying.”
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