Leicester City star James Maddison was absent from England's open training session in Al Wakrah, Qatar, ahead of the clash with Iran on Monday. The 25-year-old was a major doubt ahead of the Three Lions' World Cup opener after picking up a knock ahead of the tournament.
He was forced off in the first half of the Foxes' Premier League meeting with West Ham after having scored just eight minutes prior to give Brendan Rodgers' side a 1-0 lead. Maddison, who has enjoyed a great run of form recently, looked set to play a key role for Gareth Southgate.
But, with a hamstring injury previously causing the midfielder discomfort, doubt was cast as to whether he would be fit in time to feature. Maddison was the only England player who was not present at the open training session and it remains to be seen if it was related to his existing injury problem.
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Speaking to the media on Wednesday, the Leicester star addressed the speculation circulating regarding his injury. He said: "We had a scan the day before we met up. It was a positive scan.
"I had a little problem in the week building up to the West Ham game and post-Everton game, which was the week before for us. I wanted to play, I didn't want to not give it a go because of the World Cup. That's not the person I am."
Maddison's scan showed that his knee was not an issue heading into the tournament, receiving the call-up from Southgate for the tournament anyway. The playmaker missed training up until this point, managing his workload as he recovers. However, the lack of involvement makes him an even bigger doubt for the Three Lions' opener against Iran on Monday.
While other teams have called up replacements for some of their injuries, Maddison's issues appear to be manageable enough that he remains part of the camp. Should he be unable to take part during the World Cup, England won't be able to call-up any other reinforcements to the squad as the deadline has now passed.
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