Levi Colwill enjoyed an “amazing” night as he made his England debut in the win over Australia and is more than happy to play out of position to stay in contention.

The 20-year-old defender played the whole game as England ran out 1-0 victors at Wembley, making the step up from winning the European Under-21 Championship in the summer.

Having spent last season on loan at Brighton, Colwill has started all eight of Chelsea’s Premier League games so far this term.

He earned a first senior call-up from Gareth Southgate last month but had to wait until Friday’s friendly against the Socceroos to make his bow.

“It was amazing,” he told beIN Sports.

“(A win and a clean sheet is) the best way to have a debut and hopefully we can build off the performance against Italy as a team and individuals and go from there.”

Having progressed through the ranks for both club and country as primarily a centre-back, Colwill started on the left of defence against Australia and has also operated there for Chelsea in recent weeks.

“Obviously, it is a different role,” he said.

“But I have been playing there for my club and I am enjoying it and if it gives me a chance to start and to play, I’m all for it.”

Southgate made 10 changes for the game as a blend of fringe players and young talent was given the chance to stake a claim.

The England manager admitted afterwards that he had given his team a “difficult task” as a lack of “cohesion” made for a tougher evening than he would have liked.

“We have had a few days, we met on Monday so we have been training hard,” Colwill added on the unfamiliar look to the team.

“Getting to know players is obviously tough as that isn’t a lot of time but I think we put in a performance we can be proud of and we have just got to build from there.”

Jordan Henderson was booed by some England fans on a night when Ollie Watkins helped Gareth Southgate’s much-changed side secure an unconvincing 1-0 win against Australia.

A sold-out Wembley crowd watched a surprisingly hard-fought friendly between these great sporting rivals on Friday night as the hosts experimented with Euro 2024 in mind.

England can wrap up qualification against Italy on Tuesday night and Watkins boosted his chances of being on the plane to Germany with a goal and solid display.

The Socceroos can count themselves unlucky to leave Wembley without so much as a goal to celebrate.

Lewis Dunk’s brilliant block denied Ryan Strain ending a fine team move just before half-time and Connor Metcalfe headed off the outside of the post late in the second period.

But England rode their luck to emerge victorious as Watkins, winning his first cap since March 2022, turned in Jack Grealish’s cross-shot at the far post in the 57th minute having earlier hit a post.

The in-form Aston Villa striker will have boosted his chance of being regular back-up to captain Harry Kane, whose place on the bench meant Henderson wore the armband on Friday.

There were murmurs from the crowd when his named was read out before England’s first home game since his controversial move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Ettifaq.

That reception turned to jeers when he was replaced in the second half of a match that began with the innocent victims of the conflict in Israel and Palestine being remembered.

The Football Association was criticised by the UK government and the Jewish community in the build-up to the match for its response to recent devastating events.

The Wembley arch was not lit up on a night when both sides wore black armbands and observed a period of silence before kick-off.

Southgate made 10 alterations from last month’s friendly win in Scotland, leading to a sloppiness and disorganisation that allowed Australia to settle and threaten.

A slight touch prevented Watkins sweeping home with the first noteworthy attack of the night and Sam Johnstone soon brilliantly stopped Keanu Baccus’ curling effort going in off Fikayo Tomori.

England remained in control of first-half possession, but Australia continued to offer the greater threat.

Mitch Duke connected brilliantly with a low cross, flashing a first-time strike under pressure narrowly wide before Kye Rowles hammered over following a set-piece scramble.

England’s carelessness was summed up by James Maddison’s slip and strike out for a throw-in, but the Tottenham man showed his quality when slipping through Watkins.

The Aston Villa frontman took the ball around Mat Ryan and got away a bobbling effort from an acute angle that came back off the far post in the 34th minute.

Debutant Levi Colwill and Conor Gallagher received bookings in quick succession as a frustrating half continued, although it would have been worse was it not for Dunk – the only survivor from the side that started in Scotland.

Graham Arnold’s outfit showed skill and confidence playing out from the back, with Martin Boyle following fine hold up play by playing in Strain to get away an attempt that was blocked brilliantly by the Brighton skipper.

It was a moment Australia were made to rue in the 57th minute.

England returned from the break with more urgency and Trent Alexander-Arnold swung a ball over to the back post after an initial free-kick was cleared.

Grealish controlled and hit an attempt across goal that Watkins slid to turn home on the line – his third goal in eight England appearances.

Southgate made a quadruple change as he turned to his talent-filled bench with around 30 minutes remaining.

Henderson was among those withdrawn and Friday’s captain was booed by sections of the Wembley crowd, which he made a point of applauding as Kieran Trippier took the armband.

Baccus dragged wide as Australia tried to claw back an equaliser and Metcalfe was free to meet a corner with a powerful header off the outside of the post in the 80th minute.

Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah came on for his England debut and the visitors failed in their attempt to grab a memorable late goal.

Harry Maguire admits he cannot keep just playing once a month for Manchester United but remains confident of winning back his place and helping Erik ten Hag’s team climb the table.

It has been a bumpy ride since the 30-year-old starred in England’s run to the Euro 2020 final, with the defender falling down the pecking order at Old Trafford and then losing the captaincy.

A widely-discussed summer move to West Ham did not materialise and settled Maguire remained at a club where he is trying to get his career back on track with next summer’s Euros looming large.

Gareth Southgate has been a staunch supporter of the centre-back throughout his ups and downs but admitted to concerns over his level of involvement, which the ex-United skipper is determined to improve.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Harry Maguire (@harrymaguire93)

“I have belief in my ability and what I have done in my career as every player should,” Maguire said.

“Every player who is on the bench should believe they should be starting, otherwise they wouldn’t be playing at a high level. I am no different.

“Listen, it’s been tough. I want to play games. I want to feel important to the club and I want to feel important to the rest of the team.

“At the moment I haven’t been playing anywhere near as much as I’d like. It’s the bottom line of it.

“I’ve just got to make sure I am ready to take the opportunities when they come along.”

Asked when gametime becomes an issue and, given Euro 2024 is coming up, whether that could be sooner rather than later, said: “Yeah, of course.

“I mean, I’m not going to sit here all my life and play once every month and if it carries on then I’m sure myself and the club will sit down and have a chat about things.

“But, honestly, at the moment I’m fully focused on two games for England, two big games.

“Then I’m fully focused on fighting and trying to get back my place at Manchester United and helping the team climb up the league to where we should be.”

England face Australia in a Wembley friendly on Friday before attention turns to the crunch Euro 2024 qualifier against Italy.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Harry Maguire (@harrymaguire93)

Maguire has kept his England place despite his struggles to break his way into Ten Hag’s line-up, making his first Premier League start of the campaign in Saturday’s 2-1 comeback win against Brentford.

“It’s not my decision whether I start the next game or not,” said the defender, who provided the assist for Scott McTominay’s winner. “I’m unsure on that. I’m sure in a couple of weeks I’ll go back and find out.

“Listen, if you look back on my last 15 to 20 starts for club and country, I would be happy to sit here and say ‘I’m really happy with my performances’.

“My record under this manager speaks for itself. I haven’t started as many games as I’d like, but my win percentage when I’ve played is ridiculously high.

“And of course there’s times when I can do more and times when I can improve and help the team, but, yeah, I’m just wanting to help the team.

“I’m wanting to help the team get out of this position that we’re in at the moment and hopefully we can do that in the coming weeks.”

Maguire benefitted from a string of defensive absentees as he made just his ninth Premier League start since Ten Hag arrived.

The Dutchman has always spoken positively about the defender in public, saying in August that he “has the abilities to be a top-class centre-back” and must “fight for his place”.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Harry Maguire (@harrymaguire93)

“I can only do what I’ve been doing in terms of when I’ve come into the team, bringing positive performances,” Maguire said.

“I’ve started two games this season and come on in a few off the bench, but, yeah, keep working hard in training.

“The manager can only watch training and make his decision from training and the games when I get the opportunity to play.

“I’ll keep working hard, I’ll keep pushing. I have great belief in myself.”

England suffered their first qualifying defeat in a decade on this day in 2019 as they slipped to a 2-1 loss at the hands of the Czech Republic in Prague.

Gareth Southgate’s men went into the game knowing victory would put them through to Euro 2020 with three matches to spare, and many thought it would be done with ease given the 5-0 thrashing England inflicted on the Czechs at Wembley a few months prior.

More of the same seemed on the cards when Harry Kane slotted home a fifth-minute penalty to put England in the driving seat.

However, the lead lasted just four minutes before the hosts drew level when Jakub Brabec bundled home a corner, and from then on, the Czechs played with increasing confidence as they chased victory at the Sinobo Stadium.

England failed to make any impression in the second period and a Czech winner would arrive in the 85th minute when they capitalised on over-elaborate play at the back from the visitors.

Jordan Pickford’s pass was pounced on by Lukas Masopust who scurried down the right before cutting back to substitute Zdenek Ondrasek who swept home the winner.

The result ended England’s 43-match unbeaten run in Euro and World Cup qualifying matches stretching back to a 1-0 loss in Ukraine in October 2009 and was a result that Southgate’s stuttering side very much deserved.

“Clearly that’s not a night that we wanted to be a part of in terms of that record,” Southgate said.

“We didn’t play well enough, simple as that. We conceded possession of the ball too cheaply.

“Particularly in the first half we didn’t create enough chances. Second half we had some good chances that we didn’t take and throughout the night we were too open out of possession.

“Some of that was because of giving the ball away. So we gave the Czechs, who played well, got to give them credit, we gave them too many opportunities to score.”

England bounced back from the defeat in impressive fashion, winning their final three qualifiers emphatically – beating Bulgaria 6-0, Montenegro 7-0 and Kosovo 4-0 – to finish six points clear at the second-placed Czechs at the top of Group A with seven wins out of eight.

That sealed their place at Euro 2020 – a tournament delayed until 2021 – where England would finish runners-up after losing to Italy on penalties in the final at Wembley.

Jarrod Bowen feels like he has returned to the England set-up in the form of his life as the West Ham forward prepares to fulfil a childhood dream of playing at Wembley.

Having come through at Hereford and flourished at Hull, the 26-year-old is well on the way to club great status at the London Stadium.

Bowen fired the Hammers to Europa Conference League glory in June’s unforgettable final against Fiorentina and has shone in the early stages of this season, scoring five in nine appearances.

That form helped the forward to earn his first England call-up since September 2022, shortly before signing a new deal until 2030 at the London Stadium.

“A really special week,” Bowen said. “Obviously got the call on Thursday before our European game so had that. Won that game out there, which was nice.

“Then the new deal was sorted over the weekend, so a really special four days.

“I’ve always wanted to be back so to get the opportunity to be selected again is something I’m really grateful for.”

Bowen’s four England appearances to date came during the worst international camp of Gareth Southgate’s largely successful reign.

The 26-year-old featured in all four Nations League matches in June 2022, starting the 1-0 away loss to Hungary and 4-0 Molineux mauling against the same opposition.

Bowen remained in the squad that September but did not play, and his return did not come until this month’s double-header against Australia and Italy.

“The way I started this season I’m probably playing the best football that I’ve played in my career,” Bowen said.

“I’ve had those experiences of Europe. It’s a bit different to when I came (before).

“I’m a dad now, so I’m in a different kind of place, you just feel a bit more mature. I feel in a really good place and to be back here, I’m really grateful for it.”

Southgate has indicated Bowen will play in Friday’s Wembley friendly against Australia, allowing him to fulfil his ambition of stepping out under the arch.

“That would be the ultimate,” he said. “I have got four caps and I am massively grateful for them but that Wembley one…

“As a little boy you dream of playing for your country and you never think it is going to happen but now I am here I want to play at Wembley and hopefully I get the opportunity to do so.”

Bowen got the nod in a highly competitive area of the squad, with 82-cap forward Raheem Sterling among those to miss out.

Little wonder, then, that he is determined to make the most out this chance to earn a spot at next summer’s Euros, especially after the disappointment of watching the World Cup in Qatar from afar.

Asked if missing out on the squad motivates him for Germany next summer, Bowen said: “Yeah, but I think you’ve also got to look at the squad that’s here as well.

“Just being named in the squad was an honour for me. To play the games I played and to be named in another squad before the World Cup was, again, another honour.

“I was disappointed to miss out but I had to deal with it and all I could do is keep playing football to a level that I know that I can play at and everything will take care of itself.”

England boss Gareth Southgate says it is “not a stupid question” to ask whether Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham is the best player in the world right now.

Having impressed at Birmingham and flourished at Borussia Dortmund, the 20-year-old midfielder has gone up another level since his big-money switch to Spain.

Bellingham has immediately established himself as one of Madrid’s main men and has scored 10 goals in 10 matches since moving to the Bernabeu for an initial £88.5million fee.

The midfielder scored a brace in Saturday’s 4-0 win against Osasuna, which will only increase talk of the midfielder being the world’s top player at the moment.

Asked if Bellingham was the best in the world right now, Southgate – speaking before the Real star’s two-goal showing on Saturday – said: “I wondered if you might say that!

“No, it’s not a stupid question. I haven’t seen everybody and studied everybody playing.

“All I can say is he’s at one of the biggest clubs in the world, arguably the biggest, and he’s playing exceptionally well and he’s currently the match-winner for them so he’s in a brilliant place.”

Bellingham has quickly established himself as a fan favourite at the Bernabeu, where he has added more goals to his game playing in a more advanced position.

The 20-year-old scored a solo stunner in Tuesday’s 3-2 Champions League win at Napoli, with Spanish media comparing him to Diego Maradona and Alfredo Di Stefano.

“He’s playing higher,” Southgate said. “We played him higher against Scotland, he had that freedom in the Ukraine game as well, we didn’t use the game well enough in the final third.

“But he’s always looked dangerous and had an impact around the opposing box with Dortmund and with us, without looking quite as calm as he has this season in front of goal.

“It’s brilliant to have people who can win games.

“He’s been the match-winner for Real Madrid and the start for him has been absolutely phenomenal. I’m chuffed to bits for him.”

Asked if Bellingham is a number 10 who could play up top on his own without a number nine, the England boss said: “Well, there are lots of different number 10s, aren’t there?

“The 10s I played against, (Dennis) Bergkamp, (Gianfranco) Zola probably were forwards that dropped deeper rather than the other way round.

“Jude is a more powerful player than those, slightly different. More of a midfield player, who’s going to make midfield runs. That doesn’t mean he’s any less effective, as we’ve seen.

“Their team have found a nice balance with the athletic midfield they have behind and, having lost (Karim) Benzema as they did and lost Vinicius (to injury) as they did, they have been adapting.

“He’s been defending on the left wing in a couple of games and I can just imagine the reaction from all and sundry if I asked him to do that!

“So, look, he’s doing brilliantly well and that’s the beauty of some of the options we’ve got. We can play players in different positions. They’re good players so they can adapt.”

Bellingham will now join up with England for a Wembley double-header, with Friday’s friendly against Australia followed by a Euro 2024 qualifier against Italy.

Southgate largely stuck with the tried and tested with his selection for October’s fixtures, meaning vice-captain Jordan Henderson kept his place after his controversial move to Al-Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia.

“His physical data is fine,” Southgate said of the former Liverpool skipper. “The games are not at the same intensity as the games here. The heat is part of that.

“There are two or three drinks breaks per game, which is an indication of the climate, and that his having an impact on how teams play.

“It is a situation that we are tracking closely. I will go out and watch games. But we get all his games the same way we get everybody else’s.

“That’s a longer trip and in these first couple of months we’ve felt it more important to see as many games live as we can, as quickly as possible, by getting around our country more.

“But as time moves on, we’ll get to more of the Milans, the Madrids and the Bayern Munichs, as well as out to see Hendo.”

Mauricio Pochettino believes Raheem Sterling can prove Gareth Southgate was wrong to leave him out of another England squad after the Chelsea forward inspired his side to a 4-1 come-from-behind win at Burnley.

Days after Southgate left him out of the squad for next week’s internationals, Sterling took his frustrations out on his old Manchester City team-mate Vincent Kompany and Burnley, having a hand in all four Chelsea goals, scoring one.

Sterling has not played for England since last year’s World Cup, and although fitness accounted for his absence in March and he asked not to play in June while he focused on getting fully back up to speed, Southgate has now chosen to leave him out of the last two squads.

But at Turf Moor he showed what England are missing as he was the man to open up Burnley after the Clarets had taken a surprise early lead through teenager Wilson Odobert.

Sterling’s cross deflected off Ameen Al Dakhil for the equaliser and he then won the penalty which Cole Palmer scored for his first Chelsea goal at the start of the second half. Sterling got his own goal in the 65th minute before having a hand in the fourth, finished by Nicolas Jackson.

“I think a player with his experience knows he needs to perform and to show the manager of the national team he was wrong in the decision,” Pochettino said. “Only with performances and scoring goals is he going to show he deserved to go.”

Although Sterling stole the headlines, Pochettino was keen to talk up the overall team performance as Chelsea made it back-to-back league wins for the first time since March, scoring four or more goals for the first time since thrashing Southampton 6-0 in April 2022.

“It was a fantastic performance, they deserve it and I’m happy for them to go into the national break with a different feeling,” Pochettino said.

“We need to be consistent. We have good competition, a very talented squad but at the moment for different reasons we cannot use all of the potential from the squad. But I think with time we are going to be in the position we want to be.

“With all the players fit there will be massive competition and that’s going to be good for the team to keep the level we need to fight for big things.”

Burnley’s worries are different. They have now equalled the record of five straight home defeats to start a top-flight campaign, joining Manchester United (1930-31), Portsmouth (2009-10), Bolton Wanderers (2011-12) and Newcastle United (2018-19) on the unwanted number.

Of the other four, only Newcastle avoided relegation in the same season.

“We had a very solid foundation defensively (last season), the best defence in the league but it’s a different level now and everybody has got to level up,” Kompany said.

“I wish there was a magic wand to solve everything but it’s a lot of work on the training ground to get the basics right. We’ve done it in games and done it well but it’s been spells and that’s our own mistake and we have to work on it.

“It’s extremely difficult against teams like this. We need a little bit of luck and we need to take chances…Performances have not been the issue, just the different calibre of players. A couple of them I’ve played with myself and I know what they can do to teams.”

Kompany, who was part of two title-winning City sides with Sterling, could only puff out his cheeks when asked about his old team-mate.

“He’s a top player,” he said.

Raheem Sterling made a point to Gareth Southgate as he sparked a Chelsea comeback in a 4-1 win at Burnley, who slumped to a fifth consecutive home defeat to start the Premier League season.

Burnley stunned Chelsea 15 minutes in when 18-year-old Wilson Odobert became the Clarets’ youngest Premier League scorer.

But Sterling, again snubbed by the England boss for next week’s internationals, helped turn the game around either side of half-time as Chelsea maintained their long unbeaten record at Turf Moor, where they have only once dropped points in nine visits in the Premier League era.

It was Sterling’s cross that deflected off Ameen Al Dakhil for a 42nd minute equaliser before he won the penalty dispatched by Cole Palmer early in the second half.

Sterling then capped a fine performance with Chelsea’s third in the 65th minute, hitting a confident strike into the bottom corner before substitute Nicolas Jackson added a fourth, with Sterling again involved in the build-up.

Coming off the back of Monday’s 2-0 win at Fulham, Chelsea have won back-to-back Premier League matches for the first time since March, but these remain baby steps for Mauricio Pochettino’s side, who were arguably second best for much of the first half.

Vincent Kompany showed no sentiment in making four changes to the Burnley side that took their first league win of the season at Luton on Tuesday night, and was rewarded with a surprise early lead.

Lyle Foster cut in from the right but as he saw his own angle to shoot rapidly closing, the South African unselfishly played in Odobert who threaded the ball between Marc Cucurella and Robert Sanchez.

Burnley were suddenly in buoyant mood. Fans might have been disappointed to see Luca Koleosho only on the bench but Odobert and Mike Tresor, both making their first starts, made them forget with some fearless attacking play.

The pair almost combined for a second in the 22nd minute as Odobert sent in a cross from the left and Tresor capitalised on a sleeping Chelsea defence to win the ball, then missed the target.

Chelsea, who had not won in their previous 19 Premier League games when conceding first, initially struggled to muster a response, but Sterling looked like Chelsea’s best way back into the match and so it proved.

He went close in the 37th minute, beating two defenders before trying to put the ball through the legs of James Trafford, who just about kept it out.

But there was nothing Trafford could do five minutes later when Sterling’s cross took a wicked deflection off Al Dakhil to loop into the net.

Two minutes into the second half, a sudden burst of speed from Sterling took him away from Vitinho, who clipped the Chelsea man on the edge of the box.

Stuart Attwell pointed to the spot and a lengthy check from VAR Darren Bond allowed Cole Palmer time to pick the spot for his first Chelsea goal as he sent England under-21 team-mate Trafford the wrong way.

Odobert saw a dipping, curling shot touched over by Sanchez, but it was Chelsea who scored a decisive third 10 minutes later.

Moises Caicedo won back possession with two challenges on the half-way line and Gallagher quickly picked out the run of Sterling, whose confident finish found the bottom right corner of the net.

Burnley fans started to head for the exits in the 74th minute when Sterling crossed to Palmer, who found Jackson, on as a substitute on his return from suspension, and he skipped away from Dara O’Shea in front of goal before applying the finish.

Odobert and substitute Koleosho both threatened for Burnley late on, but they became only the fifth side to start a season with five consecutive home defeats in top-flight history.

Mikel Arteta has confirmed Bukayo Saka is in contention to face Manchester City in the Premier League on Sunday.

Saka sustained a muscle injury and was substituted during Arsenal’s 2-1 defeat at Lens in Group B of the Champions League on Tuesday.

The winger, who has scored four Premier League goals in seven games this season, could feature in Sunday’s clash at the Emirates and is part of Gareth Southgate’s England squad for a friendly with Australia and a Euro 2024 qualifier with Italy.

“He is in contention, we’ll see how he progresses from here to Sunday,” Arteta said.

“Obviously he had to leave the pitch (against Lens), that’s never good news, but let’s see how he recovers.

“I have spoken to Gareth on several occasions. I have to do my job and give him the news.

“He needs to make the best decision for the national team. I’m not going to get involved.”

The Spaniard believes Arsenal’s Community Shield victory over Manchester City was important for confidence but admitted the Gunners will need to be “at our best in every department for 100 minutes” if they are to repeat that success this weekend.

Arsenal beat Pep Guardiola’s treble-winning side on penalties in August after Leandro Trossard’s dramatic stoppage-time equaliser cancelled out Cole Palmer’s opener at Wembley.

However, that result between the teams has been the exception in recent years. City had beaten Arsenal in eight successive matches heading into the Community Shield, while Guardiola’s men are currently on a 12-match winning streak against the Gunners in the Premier League.

In fact, Arsenal have to go back to 2015 for the last time they claimed victory over City in the league, and Arteta knows what level of performance his side must produce on Sunday if they are to end that winless run.

“It was an important one for us (winning in Community Shield),” Arteta said.

“Having success against City is something you have to value, the way we did it as well and it gave us confidence and a lift that we can beat them.

“One thing for certain is that we know we will have to be at our best in every department for 100 minutes and then we will have a chance.”

An Arsenal victory this weekend would see them move two points clear of current leaders City, but Arteta dismissed any suggestion it would be a season-defining result.

“It will be a big boost energy- and confidence-wise but apart from that and the three points, nothing else,” he said.

Arteta highlighted Guardiola’s strengths as a manager and noted his fellow Spaniard’s decision to play Bernardo Silva at left-back in previous meetings was unexpected.

And the Gunners boss, who was Guardiola’s assistant at City between 2016 and 2019, credited his compatriot’s willingness to change tactics in games.

“Every year we have new tools, new players and different things,” Arteta said.

“We know each other, we expect things from each other but it is down to the players.

“I didn’t expect him to play Bernardo at left-back. Yes (expect Pep to make big changes) and he does that in big games.

“He’s done it this season as well. Against different opponents he does different things and that’s a big quality of them (City) because they can change.

“They can do this during the game, at half-time and that’s a strength, they can dominate.”

Crystal Palace boss Roy Hodgson admits his side are in the thick of a “serious injury crisis” with midfielder Eberechi Eze becoming the latest player set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

Eze’s hamstring issue ruled him out of selection for Gareth Southgate’s latest England squad after he featured last month, with the 25-year-old joining an ever-growing list of Palace players unavailable for Saturday’s home encounter with Nottingham Forest.

Despite the latest blow, Hodgson made clear he had no intention of courting pity, pointing to the bigger picture as he sought to assure concerned supporters.

Hodgson said: “There is no sympathy in the world of football for injuries and there is no point seeking sympathy. It happens to all teams.

“We happen to be in the middle of quite a serious injury crisis at the moment, but we have to learn to deal with it and accept the situation and look forward to the time when our squad is bigger again when these players return.

“OK, it’s not going to be in the next week or two, but the season doesn’t end until May so we have to keep that in mind as well.”

Palace sit ninth in the Premier League table after seven matches and enter Saturday’s contest bolstered by their 1-0 victory over Manchester United last time out, with defender Joachim Andersen providing the decisive strike.

Hodgson, aware of his dwindling resources, said: “We are going to be dependent now, really, on the players who have come in to take their places in doing a good job, which to be fair they have been doing.

“I’m very satisfied with the way the team has been playing, and we’re a squad, so there is no point complaining about injuries. They do happen and you must never feel sorry for yourself.

“One or two of the players who have come in, in the last two or three weeks, who have not necessarily played from the start, have come in and done exceptionally well. That is the way we have got to look at it.”

While Hodgson refused to set a timeframe for Eze’s return, he did concede that the injury was “serious” and “the severity of the injury might suggest it’s as long as that.”

Michael Olise, among Hodgson’s other key attackers, has not played this season as he continues to recover from a hamstring injury of his own, while summer signing Jefferson Lerma – also out with same problem – remains ruled out.

Odsonne Edouard, yet another member of Palace’s hamstring woe-club, has progressed and could start against Forest at Selhurst Park, while Brazilian Matheus Franca is still working his way back to match fitness, but is “no longer injured”.

Dean Henderson, James Tomkins and Naouirou Ahamada all remain unavailable.

England boss Gareth Southgate believes VAR has not done anything to resolve controversial refereeing decisions.

The off-field decision-making process has come under renewed fire this week after Liverpool were denied a fair goal in their defeat at Tottenham when VAR Darren England mistakenly thought the on-field decision was onside and inadvertently validated the linesman’s offside call, with play restarting before the mistake was noticed.

There has been a huge fallout from the gaffe, with Reds boss Jurgen Klopp calling for the game to be replayed while the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) has announced a review into VAR and its practices.

Southgate has always been against it and says nothing has changed from when on-field decisions were final.

“Well, all I would say is everybody used to go to the pub and moan about the ref and they still go to the pub and moan about the ref,” he quipped.

“So I’m not sure what we’ve resolved, really. I don’t like it, never have, so I have sort of dismissed it.

“I just was always brought up as a kid that the referee’s decision was final. You might agree or disagree but we have to get on with it.

“I didn’t ever feel we were going to resolve every issue.

“I think we are probably too far down the line now to go back but I didn’t like it from the off.

“Once you open up a technology opportunity, you are normally going that way and you have got to refine and improve on what happens. But yes, I don’t like it.”

The PGMOL has taken unprecedented steps in recent times of retrospectively releasing audio of the decision-making process, including England’s expletive-filled mistake at the weekend.

But fans in the stadium remain in the dark at the time, often left waiting for up to five minutes while decisions are scrutinised in Stockley Park.

“When I am at games I am always conscious that the only people who don’t know what is going on are the people who have paid to go,” he said. “I find that really difficult.

“I am sitting in the stadium next to people and I am lucky as I normally get a free ticket and other people pay a lot of money and haven’t got a clue or are on the phone to someone at home asking what’s going on.

“The frustration, you can feel it in the stadium, you can feel the view.

“I know if we didn’t have it people would go back to, ‘well this could be resolved’, but when I am in the stadiums my sense is they don’t necessarily want 14 minutes of added time or a decision by something that they are not totally across the process of.”

Meanwhile, Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou has said he does not know if he likes “where the game’s heading” in the wake of the VAR controversy.

Speaking to the Sydney Morning Herald, prior to the audio emerging and Klopp’s suggestion of a replay, Postecoglou questioned the game’s pursuit of “perfection”.

He told the paper: “It seems like we’re now heading towards that space of trying to find perfection in a game where the beauty of it is the imperfection.

“What makes our game different from any other game is that the goal – the actual goal, the scoring of a goal – is that most precious commodity. It’s the flaws in the game that creates goals.

“Sometimes we think it’s the brilliance – yeah, it is the brilliance, but mostly on the back of somebody’s flaw, either an opposition player or your own teammate or a referee.

“We’re trying to make this perfect game, which the other codes do – but they have to, because goals in their game don’t mean anything, so they try and create this perfect product. And that’s not football.

“Football is Maradona putting it (in with) his hand. I don’t like it, but that’s the game, and if you want to eliminate that? Yes, OK, but if you’re searching for perfection within football, I just think you take away from what the essence of it is.”

England manager Gareth Southgate says he would never risk Bukayo Saka’s long-term fitness by selecting him to play when he is not fit.

Saka was included in Southgate’s 26-man squad for forthcoming games against Australia and Italy, despite limping out of Arsenal’s last three games.

He is being assessed ahead of this Sunday’s Premier League clash with Manchester City before the squad is due to meet up early next week.

Southgate says he wants his best players available for the biggest games, with a crunch European Championship clash against Italy at Wembley on October 17, but never to the detriment of their health.

“I can only go via what Mikel (Arteta) has said about the last few games,” Southgate said regarding Saka’s fitness. “He is in contention for the weekend so we’ve obviously got a very important qualifier.

“We look after the players as well as any country. There’s always a focus on our players because they are playing their club football, in the main, in England and then we are playing here as well.

“Whereas all the other countries call the players that are playing in the Premier League and nobody looks at how they look after them and how they train them.

“When we have really good dialogue with all of their clubs, I think they pretty much all would agree that we probably give better feedback than every other nation.

“They have trust in us that we make decisions that are right for the long-term whenever we can. We only have 10 matches a year. And there’s been times when … Bukayo, for example, we haven’t always played.

“But there are certain key games where if it’s possible to have your best players then you do want to have them. So we’ve got that responsibility of qualifying for the country but … I’ve been a player … I’ve never ever taken a risk on a player’s physical wellbeing. And nor would I.”

Raheem Sterling was left out again, with Southgate explaining his side are no longer reliant on the Chelsea forward to supplement Harry Kane’s goals.

The England boss continued: “We know what Raheem is capable of and (Jarrod) Bowen has got five (goals) in seven (games), so in terms of the opportunity opened up with (Eberechi) Eze and (Callum) Wilson out, (Ollie) Watkins and Bowen are both in a hot streak of form. That’s the thinking.

“In the end, we’ve got brilliant competition for places in several areas of the pitch.

“There is a battle now, without a doubt. For a long period of time Raheem was the one that was scoring goals for us and his club.

“We now have goals from Saka, (Phil) Foden, (Marcus) Rashford. Rashford’s always been a scorer with us.

“(Jack) Grealish is a different type of wide player, so now we’re getting goals from Jude (Bellingham).

“We’re not just reliant on Harry Kane. For a long time it was Harry and Raheem that were knocking up the goals. But there’s a different competition in place.”

England boss Gareth Southgate insists he has never been a fan of VAR and would prefer just to accept referees’ decisions.

The off-field decision-making process has come under renewed fire this week after Liverpool were denied a fair goal in their defeat at Tottenham when VAR Darren England mistakenly thought the on-field decision was onside, but instead validated the linesman’s offside call.

There has been a huge fallout from the gaffe, with Reds boss Jurgen Klopp calling for the game to be replayed while the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) has announced a review into VAR.

Southgate’s side were victims of a contentious call in the early days of VAR when Jesse Lingard had a goal disallowed in the semi-final of the Nations League in 2019 after a questionable offside decision.

And the manager’s fondness for the system has not grown since then.

“Well, when you say I was at the forefront of it, I wasn’t for it,” Southgate said.

“My first experience of it…we’re still not sure if the Jesse Lingard goal that knocked us out of a semi-final was legit or not.

“I don’t like it. I think we should just accept referees’ decisions, but I also know that we’re unlikely to go back to a world where we don’t have technology as part of that decision-making process.

“It was never going to resolve every issue and I don’t think there is any solution that will achieve that.”

England manager Gareth Southgate is hoping for a positive update on Bukayo Saka after selecting the Arsenal star despite fears over his fitness.

Having failed to finish the matches against Tottenham and Bournemouth, the 22-year-old again left the field early in Tuesday’s 2-1 Champions League defeat at Lens.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta admitted afterwards that it “didn’t look good” for Saka, yet the forward was still named in Southgate’s 26-man squad two days later.

The England boss is awaiting news on the national team’s back-to-back men’s player of the year and has not given up on him being available for this month’s double-header against Australia and Italy.

“He’s still being assessed,” Southgate said of Saka, who faces a race to be involved for Arsenal against Manchester City on Sunday before attention turns to international matters.

“Obviously, they’ve got a big game this weekend and then there’s another seven days before we play Australia and 10 days before we play Italy as well.

“So, everybody will monitor everything as we go forward.”

England could wrap up their place at Euro 2024 this month, with the Wembley qualifier against Italy following their friendly under the arch against Australia.

Uncapped Levi Colwill and Eddie Nketiah got the nod along for the October fixtures, while Ollie Watkins received his first call-up since March 2022 and Jarrod Bowen returned for the first time since that September.

But there was no place for Mason Mount, James Ward-Prowse or Raheem Sterling, with the latter having not added to his 82 caps since the 2022 World Cup.

Asked if he spoke to Chelsea forward Sterling like he did last month, Southgate said; “No, we spoke before the last squad.

“As I said, we’ve been happy with the wide players and the performances in the last four games, in particular, and the two in March. The team are playing really well, so clearly there’s some stability there.

“We have added Jarrod Bowen in those wide areas – I mean, he scored five in seven games, he’s playing really well.

“With the Australia game as well, there’s an opportunity to learn some different things as well.”

On Watkins, who Southgate saw score a hat-trick for Aston Villa against Brighton at the weekend, he said: “There’s a little bit with Callum Wilson as well, so he’s carrying an injury.

“Not certain he’d be available. Ollie has started the season well. He’s hit a bit of scoring form in the last couple of weeks.

“You have to be careful with that because you can’t just go on recency bias when you’re looking at selection, but he is in good form.

“He’s obviously coming in on a high and he’s been with this before.

“We know his character, we know his personality. He’s a good guy around the around the group.

“Team are playing well, he’s playing for a club that are really well coached and the team are in a good moment.”

Ben Chilwell and Eberechi Eze join Wilson in missing this month’s matches through injury, while Harry Maguire, Jordan Henderson and Kalvin Phillips retain their place despite questions over their spots.

John Stones returned having missed a September camp that ended with a 3-1 win in Scotland, who are vying with England for Elliot Anderson’s international future.

The 20-year-old left the last Scottish camp after two days following his first call-up to the full squad and last week indicated he wanted more time to consider his international future.

“I haven’t (spoken to him),” Southgate said of the Newcastle talent. “I mean those things (Football Association technical director) John McDermott deals with that, really.

“So, I think we’re the same as Steve. We’re respectful that those sorts of decisions are big decisions and we don’t want to pressure anybody.

“We like Elliot, we think he’s a very good player, got high potential.

“He’s obviously at a club that are absolutely flying, so, yeah, we’ll just have to wait and see.

“But we’re very much respectful that if he needs time to think that through we completely understand.”

Gareth Southgate says it will be “brilliant for everybody” if the UK and Ireland’s bid to host the Euro 2028 gets the green light as expected.

Turkey’s withdrawal to focus on a joint submission with Italy for Euro 2032 means the five-nation bid is now the only option on the table for the finals in five years’ time.

UEFA will formally announce the hosts for the two tournaments following a meeting of its executive committee in Switzerland next week.

“Well, it’s clearly a joint bid with all the other home nations so brilliant for everybody if that opportunity arises,” England manager Southgate said. “There’s still a little bit to do, I think.

“But I think you know, all the nations are fantastic football nations, huge pride.

“They’ll have huge pride in hosting and if the teams get qualified as well then there’s obviously some home advantage to hosting as well.”

The news came on the same day that it emerged Spain, Portugal and Morocco are set to co-host the 2030 men’s World Cup, with three South American nations.

Montevideo in Uruguay – the city which hosted the first World Cup finals match in 1930 – is poised to stage the opening contest, with games in Argentina and Paraguay to follow.

The rest of the 48-team tournament will then move to north Africa and Europe, under a proposal from UEFA, the Confederation of African Football and South American confederation CONMEBOL which was accepted by the FIFA council at a meeting on Wednesday.

The hosting arrangement is now subject to formal approval by FIFA’s congress.

Asked about the impact of these plans on player welfare, Southgate said: “I’m not sure what they’ve got in mind for that, really!

“I should enjoy a invite to Buenos Aires as a TV pundit if that’s the plan.”