England face a big blow ahead of the knockouts as they lose Arsenal defender ben White due to personal reasons. The English centre back who was not used by head coach Gareth Southgate will be flying back home under special circumstances and he will not return to Qatar again as per the news reported from Qatar.
The 25-year-old has been in sensational form this season for Premier League leaders Arsenal and hence he was picked by Southgate. While he still wanted to stick to his trusted duo of Harry Maguire and John Stones, Ben White was surely a fall back option for the English tactician. However now he will not have that option for the remainder of the tournament as the Three Lions take on Senegal in the round of 16.
White did not feature in the first two matches in England’s 6-1 win over Iran and goalless draw against the United States. He completely missed the last group stage clash against Wales where again England won and cruised through to the knockouts in Qatar.
“We ask that the player’s privacy is respected at this moment in time,” a statement from the Football Association read.
The Three Lions cannot name a replacement at this stage into the FIFA World Cup but for now they were sending best wishes to Ben White. Even the Arsenal social media handle had posted an image of White in his support. The Gunners posted “We’re all with you, Ben” and a love heart emoji on all their social media handles.
This was the 25-year-old centre back’s second major tournament after the European Championships where England reached the finals and lost it out against Italy on penalties.While he did not make a single appearance in that tournament, he has earned only two caps since the Euros. While he was picked for the World Cup squad aswell but deep down English fans understood that Maguire and Stones are among the top preferences for the England manager.
Among the substitutes, James Maddison returned to the bench against Wales after he picked up a niggle in his last Leicester City game before the World Cup. Therefore he missed the first two World Cup games before returning to the bench for the Wales match.
Manchester City defender Kyle Walker featured for England in their win against Wales as this was his first start since undergoing groin surgery in October. Whereas his teammate Kalvin Philipps also got some minutes after he returns from a shoulder operation.
England will take on the spirited Senegal as they finished second in Group A as the Lions of Teranga finished second behind the Netherlands with a last game win over Ecuador in a five goal thriller. Senegal captain Kalidou Koulibaly scored a great goal to help the team reach the knockouts after winning 2-1 against Ecuador in a must win clash. While England will be a major challenge for them, Alio Cisse’s men will be looking to continue their fight even in the knockouts.
