Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice and Cole Palmer have all dropped out of the England squad for the Nations League double header against Greece and the Republic of Ireland. Interim Three Lions boss Lee Carsley named an 26-man squad last week, the final squad before Thomas Tuchel takes over in January.

Arsenal duo Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice are among eight players to pull out of England’s squad for their upcoming Nations League fixtures. Both were withdrawn in the latter stages of the Gunners’ 1-1 draw with Chelsea on Sunday. Rice was playing with a broken toe, while Saka departed after suffering a blow to his leg.

Reports in Italy suggested that the knee issue was not a serious one, and Arteta confirmed ahead of the trip to Newcastle that the defender was likely to miss a “few weeks”. There has been no firm update on Calafiori’s recovery, but Arsenal will hope to have him available again later this month.