Switzerland vs England: Jordan Henderson injury adds to England’s problems
The Liverpool midfielder hurt his left ankle in training
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Your support makes all the difference.Jordan Henderson has given Roy Hodgson further cause for concern having limped out of training at St Jakob-Park tonight ahead of England’s first Euro 2016 qualifier against Switzerland tomorrow night.
The Liverpool midfielder hurt his left ankle and ended the session early. He was examined on the pitch for a few minutes before walking off for further treatment. He will be assessed tomorrow morning, but it is unclear whether the problem will have any implications for the game for which Hodgson has already suffered three injury withdrawals.
The most serious of those was Daniel Sturridge but new call-up Jack Colback and reserve goalkeeper Ben Foster have already returned to their clubs for treatment. If needed, Hodgson has cover for Henderson in midfield in James Milner or Fabian Delph. His original squad was only 22-strong and he is already down to 19.
Danny Welbeck is expected to come into the team for Sturridge with the big question over the kind of system that Hodgson deploys. He said today that he had the option of using one of the two systems used against Norway on Wednesday. They were 4-4-2 and then, later in the game, a midfield diamond with Raheem Sterling at its point behind Sturridge and Welbeck.
Hodgson said: “We still have those options. We’re fortunate, in an unfortunate situation after losing a player in training – and Daniel was unbelievably devastated, so it was a tough pill. I’m disappointed, but we still have the players there. The fact we haven’t raced out to replace people means we think we have enough bodies.”
Returning to the country of his greatest triumph, Hodgson said that he was still happy in his job despite recent criticism. “Am I seeing the nasty side of the job? No. There is no nasty side. I love this job. It’s the pinnacle of any coaching career. To coach your country. I am aware that, after the World Cup, there may have been a slight swing in popularity. But the real support and popularity is with the players.
“I need them to believe that we can move forward. I get the good feelings from there. I will have to live with external ideas and thoughts and accept them. I’m sure that we will never, really, be able to explain to people how badly we felt on the plane home [from Brazil].”
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