LGBT+ England fans could turn their backs on Jordan Henderson when he plays for his country in a symbolic response to the midfielder’s move to Saudi Arabia.

Henderson was included in the 26-man squad for the upcoming games with Ukraine and Scotland as England manager Southgate stuck with the 33-year-old despite his move to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ettifaq.

Southgate does not believe Henderson will be jeered when he next turns out for England, despite the criticism he has faced for moving to Saudi Arabia after being a keen and vocal supporter of the Premier League’s ‘Rainbow Laces’ campaign and also working alongside Liverpool’s official LGBT+ fan group.

And while Joe White, the co-chair of Pride in Football and founder of Three Lions Pride believes Henderson will not receive a hostile reception, his presence on the pitch could be greeted with a symbolic gesture “in the same way he turned his back on us”.

“It definitely will be a very muted atmosphere and, whilst he’s got presence in the squad, he will not have a presence in our banners that we take to games any more,” White told the PA news agency.

“I don’t think it will go hostile because ultimately we want England to do as well as possible but I do think that, say he came on as a substitute, where before there would be a lot of cheering, particularly from our group at Three Lions Pride, I think there will just be silence now .

“It may well be that there comes a joint message from the LGBT fans in the stadium who may well turn their backs on him coming onto the pitch in the same way he turned his back on us by going to Saudi.”

Speaking after announcing his squad, Southgate said: “We are picking a team for football reasons.”

“There are lots of different ownership models of clubs in England, there are lots of players playing in countries where there are different religious beliefs, I don’t really know why a player would receive an adverse reaction because of where he plays his football.

“That of course is a personal choice.

“It is really difficult to… I’m a bit lost really with some of the questioning because you walk in to try and talk about a squad announcement based on football decisions and increasingly we are navigating such complex political aspects that I’m not really trained to do.

“Forgive me if I am stumbling a little bit but I find it a really difficult scenario to try and get right.

“We’ll do the best we can and we try to make decisions for any number of reasons but I have to pick a squad based on the players that I think can get us qualified for a European Championship and that’s why we’ve picked the players we have.”

England had previously been criticised by LGBT+ groups after they opted against wearing the ‘One Love’ armband during the World Cup in Qatar last year.

Southgate, though, reaffirmed his commitment to inclusivity, adding: “We are supportive of the LGBTQ+ community.

“A large number of the team and staff have either relatives or friends from that community.

“It is something that we are very conscious of and a situation we are very conscious of.

“We have tried to be very supportive but I also accept members of the community felt let down around the World Cup.

“These are all very complex situations that we are trying to do our best to navigate.”

Southgate told BBC Radio 5Live that it had been a straightforward decision to pick Henderson, while adding it was up to the player himself when he would address the issue.

“It’s for him to decide when he’s going to speak and how he speaks,” he said.

The PA news agency understands media plans for which England players will be put forward to speak at St George’s Park next week are still to be confirmed.

Asked if there was anything Henderson could do to win back support of the LGBT+ community, White added: “I don’t think he can regain the trust purely because he’s now living in a country where it’s illegal to be LGBT, where the local LGBT community have to hide and live in fear of arrest, of state-sanctioned abuse.

“He can’t just suddenly start going ‘Oh well, I’m engaging on LGBT rights’ because he doesn’t have the influence in the country and if he does things without listening to the likes of Amnesty International and people who know what it’s like to have to protect local LGBT people, all he’ll do is end up damaging those who are most affected by that regime.”

Former Manchester United captain Harry Maguire and Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips were both included in Southgate’s squad despite being yet to play a minute of club football this season.

Under-21 European Championship winner Levi Colwill received his maiden formal call-up and uncapped Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah has also got the nod for the first time, although there is no place for Chelsea forward Raheem Sterling despite a strong start to the campaign.

Gareth Southgate says Raheem Sterling is “not particularly happy” to have been overlooked for an England recall.

The 28-year-old is one of the national team’s most experienced players but has not added to his 82 caps since December’s World Cup quarter-final exit to France.

Sterling missed the March meet-up through injury and a nagging hamstring issue led to what his camp described as a “mutual decision” to recuperate his body after a rocky first season at Chelsea.

But the forward’s expected return did not come to pass, with the forward the most eye-catching omission from Southgate’s 26-man squad for the Euro 2024 qualifier against Ukraine and friendly in Scotland.

“We were really pleased with the group (in June),” the England manager said.

“To bring Raheem back in we have to leave someone else out and on the back of three games I didn’t think anybody in this group of attacking players warrants being left out.

“It’s really good to see him start the season so well. He looks in good condition, he looks hungry.

“He’s obviously an important player for us and has been an important player for us.

“But we have in those attacking areas just behind the nine a lot of competition for places.

“I think all of those players have started the season well and certainly the group that are with us has done really well for us in the in the recent games.”

Put to the England boss that Sterling has missed three squads in a row, Southgate said: “He was not available for the last two and of course that’s given other people the opportunity to play well and to establish themselves in the group.

“It’s a difficult call and Raheem is not particularly happy about it, but I understand that because he’s an important player for us.

“I’m convinced he’s going to have an excellent season with Chelsea, there’s no doubt about that.”

Sterling has started Chelsea’s first three Premier League matches of the season, including scoring twice and providing an assist in Friday’s 3-0 win against Luton.

A statement from the player’s camp on Thursday read: “Raheem will revert to the coach for all comment but would like to reinforce that the decision has been respected. Raheem will continue to focus on his domestic form.”

While Sterling was overlooked, Southgate kept the faith with England vice-captain Jordan Henderson despite his controversial move to Saudi Arabia club Al-Ettifaq.

There was also a place for former Manchester United captain Harry Maguire and Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips, despite neither having played a minute of club football.

Harry Maguire retains his place in the squad despite not featuring for Manchester United this season (Martin Rickett/PA)“With Harry Maguire, we’ve lost a lot of experienced players in terms of caps at centre-half, so we’re giving some less experienced players the opportunity to come into the squad,” Southgate said.

“Unfortunately it looks like Tyrone (Mings) is out for most of the season. John Stones is out for this camp. Eric Dier hasn’t appeared in Tottenham’s squad.

“If I’m looking at all the players we’ve given caps to in the last few years, Conor Coady is also out and playing in the Championship now so there is a space there.

“I think, for these two games, it’s important we have some experience in that area of the pitch.

“Clearly with Harry and with Kalvin Phillips, it’s far from ideal that they’re not playing football.

“But similarly with Kalvin, I think Declan Rice was the only English player to start at the weekend as a single pivot and Kalvin is the next best positioned to do that.

“Hendo can play there, Conor Gallagher could play there, but it’s not the best position.

“We’ve got players play in the league that are playing in a double pivot. Someone like Angel Gomes is doing that but it’s a different sort of role.

“So, yeah, it’s not a good situation that those guys aren’t playing football but in certain positions we have a lot of depth in in other positions we don’t have a lot of depth.”

Southgate largely stuck with the tried and tested, but there was a place for uncapped Chelsea defender Levi Colwill and, more surprisingly, Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah.

“Two young players who are doing very well, who have done well with our junior teams,” Southgate said. “Levi, of course, had some time with us in the summer anyway.

“Eddie is coming in because it’s an area where we’d like to have a look at him.

“He’s a young player with a really good pedigree, very good finisher and it’s good for him to have some time with us.

“I think he’s record goalscorer with the Under-21s as well.

“He’s not had the chance to work with us up to this point but he’s a player that we’re really interested in.”

Gareth Southgate does not believe Jordan Henderson will be jeered when he next turns out for England as he reiterated his support of the LGBT+ community after naming the Al-Ettifaq midfielder in his latest squad.

Henderson was included in the 26-man pool for the upcoming games with Ukraine and Scotland as England manager Southgate stuck with the 33-year-old after his move to the Saudi Pro League.

The transfer proved to be a controversial one, with Henderson leaving Liverpool for Saudi Arabia despite having been a keen and vocal supporter of the Premier League’s ‘Rainbow Laces’ campaign and after previously working alongside the Merseyside club’s official LGBT+ fan group in the past.

The England boss has no concerns that there will be any adverse reaction next time he pulls on the shirt.

“We are picking a team for football reasons,” he said.

“There are lots of different ownership models of clubs in England, there are lots of players playing in countries where there are different religious beliefs, I don’t really know why a player would receive an adverse reaction because of where he plays his football.

“That of course is a personal choice.

“It is really difficult to… I’m a bit lost really with some of the questioning because you walk in to try and talk about a squad announcement based on football decisions and increasingly we are navigating such complex political aspects that I’m not really trained to do.

“Forgive me if I am stumbling a little bit but I find it a really difficult scenario to try and get right.

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“We’ll do the best we can and we try to make decisions for any number of reasons but I have to pick a squad based on the players that I think can get us qualified for a European Championship and that’s why we’ve picked the players we have.”

England had previously been criticised by LGBT+ groups after they opted against wearing the ‘One Love’ armband during the World Cup in Qatar last year.

Southgate, though, reaffirmed his commitment to inclusivity, adding: “We are supportive of the LGBTQ+ community.

“A large number of the team and staff have either relatives or friends from that community.

“It is something that we are very conscious of and a situation we are very conscious of.

“We have tried to be very supportive but I also accept members of the community felt let down around the World Cup.

“You have to live your life as you see fit. I can only talk on a personal level and my feelings of what the team represents.

“I always try to do things with my life that I believe are inclusive, I try to be accepting of all cultures and understanding of everybody’s different positions and there might be a feeling we haven’t done enough in certain situations.

“If that is the case, then we have to accept that criticism. But it is not intentional that we would let down any of our fans.

“These are all very complex situations that we are trying to do our best to navigate.”

Former Manchester United captain Harry Maguire and Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips were both included in Southgate’s squad despite being yet to play a minute of club football this season.

Under-21 European Championship winner Levi Colwill received his maiden formal call-up and uncapped Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah has also got the nod for the first time, although there is no place for Chelsea forward Raheem Sterling despite a strong start to the campaign.

Wales will be without Daniel James for their crucial Euro 2024 qualifier against Latvia next month.

Leeds winger James has been sidelined with an adductor injury and misses the crunch clash in Riga on September 11, as well as the Cardiff friendly against South Korea four days earlier.

The 45-times capped James has been a regular since making his debut in 2018, starting 34 consecutive competitive games before the run came to an end last November.

Wales boss Rob Page has named a 25-man squad for the September double-header as he seeks to revive the Dragons’ Euro 2024 qualification hopes.

Back-to-back defeats against Armenia and Turkey in June have left Wales with an uphill task to secure an automatic route to the tournament in Germany next summer.

Nottingham Forest forward and Tottenham target Brennan Johnson is included, and Tom Lockyer returns to the squad for the first time since his heart scare in May.

The 28-year-old Luton captain collapsed just a few minutes into the Hatters’ Sky Bet Championship play-off final win over Coventry at Wembley.

Lockyer underwent an operation to address an irregular heartbeat but has since returned to action to lead Luton in their first Premier League campaign.

David Brooks is also present after scoring for Bournemouth in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday, his first senior goal since returning to action earlier this year following treatment for stage two Hodgkin lymphoma.

Tottenham defender Ben Davies is available after missing the 2-0 Euro qualifying defeat to Turkey in June due to the birth of his first child.

Page has named four goalkeepers in his squad – Danny Ward, Wayne Hennessey, Adam Davies and Tom King – but none of them have had any game-time this season.

Kieffer Moore and Joe Morrell are both suspended for the Latvia qualifier after picking up red cards in June.

The pair received two-game bans, with Bournemouth striker Moore serving the first part of his suspension in Turkey after being sent off against Armenia.

Portsmouth midfielder Morrell saw red against Turkey in Samsun and will also miss the October qualifier with Croatia.

Both players have been included in Page’s squad and can feature against Jurgen Klinsmann’s South Korea in Cardiff on September 7.

Bolton midfielder Josh Sheehan returns to the squad for the first time since September 2021 and Wes Burns is also included. Midfield pair Luke Harris and Ollie Cooper drop out.

Full squad: W Hennessey (Nottingham Forest), D Ward (Leicester), A Davies (Sheff Utd), T King (Wolves), B Davies (Tottenham), M Fox (QPR), J Rodon (Leeds, on loan from Tottenham), B Cabango (Swansea), C Mepham (Bournemouth), T Lockyer (Luton), N Williams (Nottingham Forest), C Roberts (Burnley), W Burns (Ipswich), E Ampadu (Leeds), J Sheehan (Bolton), J James (Birmingham), J Morrell (Portsmouth), H Wilson (Fulham), A Ramsey (Cardiff, captain), K Moore (Bournemouth), N Broadhead (Ipswich), B Johnson (Nottingham Forest), D Brooks (Bournemouth), T Bradshaw (Millwall), L Cullen (Swansea).

England’s Euro 2024 qualifier against Ukraine in September will be played in the Polish city of Wroclaw.

Gareth Southgate’s men have enjoyed a 100 per cent start to European Championship qualification, with four wins from their four Group C matches.

England’s next qualifier is on September 9 away to Ukraine, who have been forced to host matches away from their homeland since Russia’s invasion in February 2022.

The Ukrainian Association of Football has confirmed that the match will be held in Poland at the 45,000-capacity Tarczynski Arena in Wroclaw.

They held last year’s Nations League games in Poland – two in Lodz, one in Krakow – and played June’s match at home to Malta in Trnava, Slovakia.

The Austrian cities of Vienna and Klagenfurt had been reportedly considered as host cities for the match against England.

Scotland midfielder John McGinn felt Georgia were “at it” when showing reluctance to get their Euro 2024 qualifier resumed at a sodden Hampden.

McGinn was full of praise for the team of ground staff, ball boys, stewards and Scottish Football Association officials who helped sweep the pitch of excess water following a heavy downpour in the hour before kick-off on Tuesday.

The game was suspended immediately after Callum McGregor fired Scotland into a sixth-minute lead and only resumed close to two hours later following extensive work on the pitch, several pitch inspections and false dawns.

Georgia did not appear ahead of one scheduled restart time before the game eventually got back under way at 9.33pm before Scotland went on to win 2-0.

McGinn said: “The message was ‘concentrate’ but I wasn’t doing very much concentrating. I didn’t know what was going on.

“One minute it was 10 minutes kicking off, then it’s 20 minutes, 30 minutes.. It wasn’t fair on the fans.

“I think the game could have been played a little bit earlier but Georgia were up to it, they were at it, they wanted the game stopped, which we would probably do in the same situation.

“It was difficult, it was probably difficult for the referee but I think common sense prevailed in the end and we got the game played. But it certainly could have been played earlier.”

The victory put Scotland eight points clear in Group A after they won their first four qualifiers for the first time.

McGinn said: “It feels a bit subdued. It ‘s a huge win for us. We are absolutely delighted. It was a really, really strange, night, something none of us have ever experienced. But we dealt with it in the best way possible.

“Credit to all the ground staff, everyone who got together. I saw the ball boys even helping at one point.

“It was really important we got the game played and thankfully for all of us we did.”

The conditions were far from ideal even after the resumption and McGinn suffered more than most, completely mis-kicking what had looked to be an excellent chance before the ball got stuck in a puddle just as he was about to shoot.

“Honestly, I couldn’t believe it,” the Aston Villa captain said. “I was away celebrating. I should have known the puddle was there. Big McTominay was laughing at me as we were running back.

“It’s just one of these things, you need to adapt. We have had this issue here against San Marino before. Maybe it’s something they will look at, I don’t know, I am not a turf specialist.”

McGinn dismissed suggestions that Georgia’s delaying tactics had given Scotland any more motivation.

“The motivation for us was four wins out of four,” the former St Mirren and Hibernian player said.

“It’s surreal for us as Scottish players just to say that but something has changed in that dressing room and we are certainly building something here and it’s exciting. We are looking at the table and starting to get really excited.

“Spain have got games to catch us up but we want to qualify. We are very, very close now which is exciting in itself.

“We will take one step at a time and not get carried away but we are very, very close now.”

Steve Clarke admits Scotland’s 2024 Euro qualifier against Georgia should have been stopped before Callum McGregor scored the opening goal in the rain-interrupted 2-0 win at Hampden Park.

A heavy rainstorm in the lead-up to the Group A fixture had rendered the match farcical in the opening stages and Clarke and opposition boss Willy Sagnol had flagged up concerns before midfielder McGregor scored in the sixth minute with a drive.

Hungarian referee Istvan Vad immediately halted the game with an announcement confirming an initial 20-minute delay for the pitch to be cleared of water before a pitch inspection.

When play eventually resumed it was over 90 minutes after it had been halted.

Midfielder Scott McTominay added a second two minutes into the second-half with his fifth goal in four qualifiers before Georgia superstar Khvicha Kvaratskhelia missed a penalty in added time.

“That’s when the game should have been stopped,” said Clarke of the period when it was goalless, as he joked, “apart from the birth of my three children it was the longest day of my life”.

“It was pretty obvious from kick off that the pitch wasn’t ready,” he said.

“They have a time limit. You know it is going to dry up, it’s only a shower. A big shower mind you, a heavy shower, but you know it is going to dry up.

“That would have been the logical time to call it or maybe not even start it and just delay the kick off.

“Obviously the who dynamic changes once there is a goal in the game. They want it stopped. We don’t. That’s normal.

“If they had scored they wouldn’t have wanted the game stopped so thankfully it dried up, everybody did their job and the best part is the players did their job.”

Scotland cemented their top spot in the group with a win which confirmed 12 points from their opening four fixtures ahead of the trip to Cyprus in September.

The Scots are eight points clear of Georgia, unbeaten in eight competitive games and are on course for an appearance in the finals in Germany next summer.

Clarke said: “I have to mention the fans, they were magnificent.

“It would have been easy for them to get a little bit down, thinking about going home because the game could have been called off.

“They stayed and every time we went on to the pitch they cheered and got behind us.

“All the volunteers who got the brushes and the brooms to get the water off the pitch, you have to say thank you because eventually we came out with a massive three points, 12 points to lead the group is a fantastic start.”

Sagnol claimed his players had been treated as “objects” as he criticised the communication from UEFA and the decision to play on after both Clarke and himself raised concerns.

The former Bayern Munich and France defender said: “I think everybody tried their best but I don’t know why the game started because after five seconds everyone could see it was impossible to play.

“The fact the referee stopped the game just after the first goal, he put himself under so much pressure.

“He could have stopped after both Steve Clarke and I spoke together and asked him to stop the match before the goal. It was about the third minute. If he had done it at that moment things would have been much easier.

“We both asked the fourth official, he said it’s not possible. The fourth official said ‘we can’t stop the match before the delegate comes down’. Then after that we were told it was the referee that had to make the decision. It was a lot of nonsense and biased communication.

“But we restarted the game as we have been asked – under massive pressure from UEFA, I have to say.

“The only thing in these moments I regret as a manager is the lack of communication. You don’t know why they decide things, they don’t really give you explanations. Then you have to cope with your players, you have to wait and wait and wait and get cold and wait.

“We feel we were considered as objects – ‘shut up and do what we tell you’.”

Sagnol denied his players had refused to come back out at one stage.

“The only thing we asked was to communicate with us, because we had to speak with our players,” he added.

“For example, the last time they came, the UEFA delegate said we had to play in six minutes. How can you say to players who have been inside for 30 minutes, who haven’t had proper dinner for five and a half hours? How can you say that to professional players?”

Scotland took another step towards next summer’s European Championship with a 2-0 win over Georgia in their rain-interrupted qualifier at Hampden Park.

A heavy rainstorm in the lead-up to the Group A fixture had rendered the match farcical in the opening stages, before midfielder Callum McGregor scored in the sixth minute with a drive through the puddles.

Hungarian referee Istvan Vad immediately halted the game, with an announcement confirming an initial 20-minute delay for the pitch to be cleared of water before an inspection.

Supporters kicked their heels in the stands until the pitch was declared playable, with the players warming up again before restarting at the 10th minute mark – over 90 minutes after it had been halted.

On resumption, midfielder Scott McTominay added a second goal two minutes after the restart – his fifth in four qualifiers – before Georgia star Khvicha Kvaratskhelia missed a VAR-awarded penalty in added time.

Scotland cemented top spot in the group having now taken 12 points from their opening four fixtures ahead of September’s trip to Cyprus.

Steve Clarke’s side are eight points clear of Georgia, unbeaten in eight competitive games and are on course for an appearance in the finals in Germany, although on this occasion the weather almost beat them on their own patch.

A long and rather bizarre night had begun amid a mood of Scottish optimism.

After a late 2-1 comeback win against Norway in Oslo on Saturday night – which followed victories over Cyprus and top seeds Spain –  the Tartan Army’s spirits could hardly have been higher.

However, Hampden Park was sodden by the time Scotland kicked off and the state of the pitch drew gasps from supporters as passes stopped in puddles, with players leaving the ball behind as they tried to drive forward.

Scotland’s opening goal came when John McGinn’s corner from the right was partially cleared to McGregor and the Celtic captain’s drive from 12 yards was parried into the net by Georgia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili.

Referee Vad did not restart the game, instead stepping off the pitch to speak to an official before returning to inform the players that the game was to be stopped while groundsmen – and then some of the ball boys – brushed water from the pitch.

Fans had booed the initial announcement of a 20-minute delay and that of a pitch inspection 10 minutes later and there was relief when the game eventually got under way again just after 9.30pm following a few more delays.

The pitch was still far from perfect but the Scots adapted slightly better, albeit the delay appeared to have dampened the enthusiasm of the home support.

Five minutes from the break McGinn came close with a header from a Kieran Tierney cross before completely missing the ball eight yards from goal.

Then McTominay’s angled-drive was tipped around a post by Mamardashvili but the visitors held out.

The second half had barely begun when McTominay pounced on a loose ball on the edge of the box and fired a low drive past Mamardashvili to re-energise the flailing Tartan Army.

Georgia’s Otar Kiteishvili thundered a shot from distance just over the crossbar on the hour but there was no real sign of a comeback.

Scotland defender Ryan Porteous headed a Gilmour cross over from close range in the 72nd minute, before Georges Mikautadze hit the side-netting with an effort at the other end.

In the second minute of four added on, referee Vad consulted the pitchside monitor before declaring the ball had hit the arm of Aaron Hickey, but Napoli’s Kvaratskhelia hammered the spot-kick over the bar.

Ultimately, Scotland will be glad that a match that looked more than in doubt at one point was completed as qualification for a second successive Euros draws ever closer.

James McClean is banking on the Republic of Ireland’s big-game mentality to force them back into Euro 2024 contention.

Ireland belatedly registered their first win of the qualifying campaign at the third time of asking when they beat Gibraltar 3-0 in Dublin on Monday evening.

Coming after a hard-fought 1-0 home defeat by France and a less-impressive display in a 2-1 reverse at the hands of Greece in Athens on Friday night, victory was the very least they needed ahead of September’s trip to Paris and the Netherlands’ visit to the Aviva Stadium three days later.

Asked about the Dutch in particular, McClean, who won his 100th senior cap against Gibraltar, said: “I don’t want to create headlines and be disrespectful, but they seem to have a lot of very good individual players, but maybe as a team they are not where they want to be and hopefully we can exploit that.

“I actually think we perform better in the big games, as you have seen here against France.”

Realistically, Ireland will need to get the better of the Netherlands over the two fixtures if they are to stand any chance of escaping from Group B, and the odds remain heavily stacked against them despite Monday’s win.

They went into that game having been roundly criticised for their performance in Athens and with manager Stephen Kenny feeling the full force of a concerted backlash.

McClean, who provided assists for both Evan Ferguson and Adam Idah, said: “Nobody likes being criticised, that’s the way it is. No one likes it, but we’re not stupid. This is the game we are in.

“If you don’t perform and do well, criticism comes along with that, as does praise when you are doing well, so you have to take the bad with the good.

“We bounced back. It’s a massive win to take us into September and hopefully we can pull off one of those famous wins.”

Ireland boast famous wins over then world champions Germany and at Euro 2016, fellow aristocrats Italy in the recent past, but under Kenny have fallen heart-breakingly short, if only just, against Portugal and France.

However, McClean, 34, is confident the belief and spirit which contributed so much to those landmark victories has been retained by a new-look squad.

He said: “I don’t think that’s something that can ever be questioned, the togetherness in the Irish team.

“There is a lot of ability in those young lads. If you can get them playing with confidence, you are on to a winner. Hopefully they can create special memories for themselves.”

McClean added his own special memory on Monday when he completed his century and was presented with his 100th cap by President Michael D Higgins before kick-off.

He said: “Having my family on the pitch, the president of the association and of the country handing me an honour, the reception of the crowd, having the whole family there, the way the lads treated me this week leading up to it and how they treated me after the game… Look, it couldn’t have gone any better.”

Gareth Southgate has indicated an ongoing lack of game time at Manchester United could impact Harry Maguire’s international role as the England boss braces for summer movement in his squad.

Monday’s 7-0 Old Trafford annihilation of North Macedonia made it four wins from as many Group C games, meaning it is a case of when rather than if their place at Euro 2024 is secured.

June’s matches were played out against a backdrop of talk about England players’ club future, with injured Jude Bellingham completing a big-money move to Real Madrid during a camp that ended with Arsenal’s club-record offer for West Ham skipper Declan Rice.

Harry Kane, Kyle Walker, Mason Mount, Jordan Pickford and James Maddison are also the subject of summer interest, while the likes of Kalvin Phillips, Conor Gallagher and Harry Maguire have decisions to make on their future.

Phillips says he intends to fight for his place at Manchester City and England stalwart Maguire continues to be linked with a move due to the Manchester United captain’s drop in game time and form.

“He is captain of an incredible football club so that is a difficult situation,” Southgate said.

“He will obviously be frustrated not to play as much as he would like but I think he has handled that really well, he has publicly talked well about supporting the team.

“We have got a few players with a lot going on, really.

“They have managed to park that brilliantly in their period with us but there is potentially quite a few moves this summer that would be hugely important for their own careers, never mind for us.”

Asked if Maguire needs to play a bit more, Southgate said: “It’s clear, really.

“I think him and Kalvin are the two who have played the least in terms of guys in this squad this season.

“But we have gone with them because in these two positions we think they are still ahead of others that might have played more.

“But it is then hard when that competition gets more even and you are not playing regularly to see their form, see their fitness, so that is the challenge for everybody.”

Maguire was named in the Euro 2020 team of the tournament for his excellent displays in England’s run to the final two years ago, as was Raheem Sterling.

The 28-year-old endured a tough 2022-23 season following his £47.5million switch to Chelsea and missed June’s fixtures as he recovers from a nagging hamstring issue.

“He’s a fighter,” Southgate said of 82-cap forward Sterling. “What we know is he’s scored an incredible amount of goals for us, important goals, that’s now a more even competition.

“In the past he was the name on the team sheet. we knew his goals were critical. There is now more competition there, but I will expect him to respond.

“He’s not been happy with this season at his club this year, the part he has to get right this summer is his physical fitness and I would expect him to be flying next year.

“If we have all of those players available when we need them then that’s brilliant but it rarely happens.”

As for Southgate, the England boss says his biggest challenge is to “keep pushing this team” and looking for improvements – a pursuit of progress that saw Trent Alexander-Arnold successfully deployed in midfield this month.

The Liverpool right-back scored in a man-of-the-match display against Malta and produced a fine assist in Monday’s 7-0 drubbing of North Macedonia.

Those displays means Southgate “would have no hesitation” picking Alexander-Arnold as a midfielder against even better teams going forwards.

“He’s an exceptional player for Liverpool in whatever position he plays,” the England boss added.#

“It’s not for me (to say what he needs to do at his club). He has produced any number of assists for Liverpool and has had a massive impact on their team.
Our team is different, the balance of our team is different.

“And the way we have been able to play is different, and the way we defended is slightly different.

“The most pleasing thing for me is that he has probably had his most enjoyable England camp ever. He’s desperate to be a part of the team, he has shown everybody what he can do in that role.

“I felt that way for a long time but when he is not doing those things regularly it is harder to transfer. His performances have spoken for themselves.”

Jack Grealish has made no apologies for his high-profile celebrations at the end of a mammoth season as he claimed any “party boy” image is misplaced.

The England international helped Manchester City to an historic treble, culminating in a Champions League final win over Inter Milan.

After the match, Grealish was the centre of attention for City’s celebrations as he drank and partied with his team-mates.

Much was made of his approach but he still reported for England duty and came off the bench in Monday’s 7-0 win over North Macedonia.

“I don’t think it is a party boy thing,” he said when asked about the response to his revelry.

“I would never sit here and lie to you and say ‘Yeah, I don’t drink and I don’t party’ because I do but then there’s so many people that will come here and say to you ‘I don’t do this, I don’t do that’ when they do.

“I’m just truthful because when you see me doing anything, you’d be like: ‘Oh, hold on. He said a few weeks ago in an interview that he didn’t do that’.

“But listen, I just enjoy myself, I’m living my dream of playing for the best club in the world in my opinion, we’ve just won the treble so I’m going to obviously have a break now with my family and my friends and then I’ll be raring to go again in four weeks.

“I knew (what) I was doing, that’s just the way I am, I’m like that when I party usually. Actually, I’m not like that usually but we’ve won the treble and it’s something that (may) never happen again.

“So I went and enjoyed myself and I wasn’t the only one – I think a lot of the time you’ll see everyone recording me, I could show you all this stuff of other people where they were the same.

“Listen, we all enjoyed ourselves, other people enjoy themselves where the cameras weren’t but that was just me enjoying myself, I’d had the most successful season of my life.

“It is now June 19, I came into training last year on July 13. Years ago, you’d have a season for nine months, I’ve just laid out a 12-month season. I’ve been into a World Cup, I’ve won three trophies and then I’m going to be back training now in four weeks or so, why not enjoy myself?”

Grealish said he had not been spoken to by England manager Gareth Southgate as he met up with the squad and felt he contributed as normal.

England won both games to take a massive step to Euro 2024 qualification and Grealish reported for duty as expected.

“I don’t know what you guys read and think sometimes. I have a great relationship with him (Southgate), honestly. A brilliant relationship,” he added.

“I kind of knew in the back of my head that I wouldn’t play on the Friday (against Malta). But even so I came into camp on Tuesday night, I was a bit hungover but I wasn’t drunk or anything.

“I came into camp with the other guys, we slept then woke up and trained on Wednesday. We trained on Thursday and, like I said, in the back of my mind, I knew I wasn’t going to play on the Friday.

“Then on the Saturday, I trained and trained well. Then on the Sunday. I thought it was going to be a toss up with who plays.

“I came on (against Macedonia) and I’m just happy. I’ve had a brilliant season, the most successful season of my life and I think there is a time now I can just sit and relax.

“My emotions have been so high. When I was sitting in the camp on Thursday, it was the biggest high I’d been on in my whole life at the weekend.

“You come into the camp, you sit on your own in your room and think ‘Will I ever feel that high again?’.”

Cristiano Ronaldo celebrated becoming the first male player to reach 200 international appearances with a last-minute winner for Portugal against Iceland.

The former Manchester United and Real Madrid star was honoured ahead of his country’s European Championship Group J qualifier in Reykjavik with a Guinness World Records certificate.

And Ronaldo, 38, who broke Kuwait forward Bader Al-Mutawa’s 196-cap record in March, scored the only goal of the game in the closing stages with his 123rd for Portugal.

Iceland were reduced to 10 men after 80 minutes when Willum Willumsson was sent off.

After four matches played, Portugal sit two points clear of Slovakia, who won 1-0 at Liechtenstein thanks to Denis Vavro’s first-half strike.

In the group’s other fixture, Luxembourg secured a 2-0 win at Bosnia.

Manchester City’s Erling Haaland continued his incredible scoring run with a double in Norway’s 3-1 victory against Cyprus.

After Ola Solbakken netted Norway’s opener in the Group A clash, Haaland scored two goals – one from the penalty spot – in four second-half minutes to end the season with a remarkable 56 strikes for club and country, and contribute to Norway’s first win of their qualifying campaign.

Romelu Lukaku put his Champions League final disappointment behind him with a brace in Belgium’s 3-0 win at Estonia.

Lukaku, who made a second-half appearance for Inter Milan in their defeat against City earlier this month, scored twice in the first half to put the visitors in control.

Johan Bakayoko completed a comfortable Group F win for the Red Devils with a third in the closing minutes.

Belgium remain three points adrift of Austria, who stay top of the group following a late victory against Sweden.

The fixture looked to be heading for a goalless draw before Christoph Baumgartner netted a brace for the home side. Austria have played one game more than Belgium.

In Group G, Hungary took top spot after winning 2-0 against Lithuania, while Serbia secured a 1-1 draw in Bulgaria following Darko Lazovic’s stoppage-time equaliser.

Meanwhile, in Group E, Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski scored for Poland but could not stop his side from slipping to a 3-2 defeat in Moldova as Albania claimed a 3-1 win in the Faroe Islands.

A frustrated Isaac Price said Kazakhstan had been “there for the taking” in Northern Ireland’s 1-0 Euro 2024 qualifying defeat at Windsor Park on Monday night.

Northern Ireland could not convert any of the 13 efforts they had at goal – with only one on target – and were punished at the death as Abat Aimbetov broke away to snatch an 88th minute winner.

It was a third consecutive 1-0 defeat for Michael O’Neill’s side, but where Friday’s loss away to Denmark had brought optimism, given a battling display against the group’s top seeds, a home defeat to a side ranked 50 places below Northern Ireland left a flat feeling.

“It’s very tough to take, frustrating really,” said Price. “We know we weren’t good enough. We knew they were there for the taking and we didn’t take our chances. We have to look back on it and improve for the next fixtures in September.”

O’Neill knows he must be patient with the many youngsters pressed into service ahead of schedule given an injury list which stretches into double figures. Price, 19, is on that list but the midfielder was not cutting himself any slack after the match.

“Personally I wasn’t good enough, technically on the ball and I didn’t create enough chances,” he said. “It was the same for the whole team really. We have to improve in the final third.

“We’re not too bad at the back, but we conceded a silly goal at the end so instead of taking a point, we lost everything.

“There was optimism coming in from the game on Friday night. We thought we deserved more against Denmark. We have to look back at the game and see where we can improve. There are so many areas where we can improve.

“We have two tough away games coming up in September, we have to go and try and get three points in both.”

Price, earning only his fourth cap, was starting a second-consecutive match, having also been asked to play in an advanced role behind the lone striker in Copenhagen.

“I’m delighted to play, the experience is something which you can’t get anywhere else,” he said. “International football is very different to the football you play at your club.”

Price is now set to start a new adventure, having this month signed a four-year contract to join Standard Liege after rejecting a new deal at Everton.

The move promises the opportunity to get more playing time and learn in a very different environment.

“I can’t wait to go over now,” he said. “Hopefully I can improve a lot more over there and in a different side of the game. It’s a lot more technical.

“I just can’t wait to get over and get started now.”

Chris Mepham insists the Wales squad are “100 per cent” behind embattled manager Rob Page.

Wales’ terrible run of results has piled the pressure on Page just nine months after he signed a four-year contract as national team manager.

Page has taken Wales to two major tournaments – the delayed Euro 2020 finals and the 2022 World Cup – but a run of one win in 12 games has left serious question marks over whether he is the man to lead the country in the post Gareth Bale-era.

Many Wales fans on social media have made it clear they want managerial change now, but Bournemouth defender Mepham says Page has the full backing of the squad.

Asked if the players were fully behind Page after Monday’s 2-0 European Championship qualifying defeat in Turkey, Mepham replied: “100 per cent. He’s someone I really admire.

“He brought me into the Wales set-up in the first place and I’ll make sure I give everything I can for him.

“On the flip side, it is a results business, but we’ve also played a lot of tough teams – Belgium twice and Netherlands twice in this run – and we’re mixing it with the very best.

“We know we need to do better and we’re definitely be looking at ways to do that. We believe we can turn it around.”

Successive defeats to Armenia and Turkey have left Wales’ hopes of automatic qualification for Euro 2024 hanging by a thread.

Wales now trail Group D leaders Turkey by five points at the halfway stage of their campaign, while Armenia and group favourites Croatia are also above them with games in hand.

Mepham said: “I think it’s a free hit for us now. We’re five points behind Turkey and the onus on us now is to win games.

“In a weird way, the pressure is off a little bit because there is that gap.

“We’ve got to make sure in the next camp that we go full guns blazing and get a result to close that gap.”

Wales return to Euro 2024 qualifying action in Latvia on September 11 before hosting Croatia the following month.

They finishing with a November double-header away to Armenia and at home to Turkey.

Even if Wales do not finish in the top two, there is a strong chance they will contest the play-offs in the hope of qualifying for the finals in Germany next summer.

Page said Wales must improve their discipline after red cards for Kieffer Moore and Joe Morrell saw them reduced to 10 men against Armenia and Turkey.

But Mepham insists there is no overall disciplinary issue, saying: “The gaffer drives getting stuck in, putting your body on the line and getting into tackles.

“But we’re experienced professional footballers and we know what’s worth going into and what’s not.

“I think Kieffer’s red card the other day was harsh, but in big moments you can’t put the team at risk by losing a man.

“Certainly having 11 men makes the game a lot easier.”

Rob Page says Wales must improve their discipline against opponents “good at the dark arts” of football.

Wales were reduced to 10 men for the second successive game as Joe Morrell was sent off in Monday’s 2-0 European Championship qualifying defeat to Turkey.

Morrell’s first-half dismissal in Samsun for a studs-up challenge on Ferdi Kadioglu came just a few days after Kieffer Moore was sent off for kicking Armenia goalkeeper Ognjen Chancharevich.

Losing players to red cards has become a recurring theme for Wales who had goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey sent off against Iran at the World Cup in November and Ethan Ampadu and Harry Wilson banished at the delayed Euro 2020 finals two years ago.

“We should be disciplined enough to keep 11 players on the pitch,” manager Page said.

“Kieffer’s fallen for it on Friday, the keeper knew exactly what he was doing. It’s the softest red card, but you lift your foot and you open yourself up for a red card.

“Joe is the same. He has not got it in him to hurt somebody, but you lift your foot and you’re asking the question.

“We frustrated Turkey and I told the players I was proud of them, but we shouldn’t have to put in a shift like that with 10 men.

“We’ve got to learn from it because these teams are good at the dark arts and we’ve got to know not to retaliate.”

Wales’ Samsun setback has left them with a mountain to climb to claim a top-two qualifying spot from Group D.

They have dropped to fourth and are five points off leaders Turkey, while Armenia and Croatia are also above Wales with games in hand.

“We’ve seen Armenia beat Latvia in the 91st minute (on Monday),” said Page.

“Both teams are capable of picking points up. There’s loads of points to play for and we have got to have that mentality where we have got to win every game now.

“To give ourselves a chance, that has got to be the mentality.”

Wales are almost certainly guaranteed a play-off place and qualifying for Germany next summer through that particular route should they not finish in the top two.

Midfielder Ampadu told S4C: “We have to pick ourselves up for the remaining group games.

“Lucky there’s still games to play and while you have a chance there’s still every hope.

“Every now and then your confidence can take a knock, but the belief is still there that we can go (to Euro 2024).

“This has not been our best camp but roll on September to put it right.”

Wales resume their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign away to bottom-placed Latvia on September 11.

They host Croatia in Cardiff in October before finishing with a November double-header away to Armenia and at home to Turkey.