Ezri Konsa will not play for England against Croatia on Thursday, and he will not be the only Arsenal player missing from Thomas Tuchel’s side at Wembley.
The FA confirmed on Tuesday morning that Konsa is out of contention for the Nations League game as he keeps following his own programme. Myles Lewis-Skelly is suspended for the same match, and over in the Northern Ireland camp, Ceadach O’Neill has pulled out of the squad altogether.
None of the three is a serious worry. For Arsenal, with the trip to Newcastle United at 5.30pm on Saturday 21 November waiting at the end of the break, there is even a small upside.
Why is Ezri Konsa missing England vs Croatia?
The England statement was short. Konsa “will not be in contention for Croatia at Wembley on Thursday as he continues to follow his own programme but will return to full training later this week before Sunday’s trip to Spain.”
The issue goes back to the Champions League win at Slavia Prague on 4 November, when the summer signing from Aston Villa came off in the second half. Mikel Arteta explained at the time that it was down to workload rather than anything worse.
“Obviously he’s playing a lot. He’s played so many games in the last few weeks, and he had some issues, and we decided to take him off,” Arteta said.
Three days later Konsa played all 90 minutes of the 1-0 win over Hull City and kept another clean sheet, his eighth full league game of the season. That is a lot of football for a centre-back who only arrived in the summer, and a quieter week now makes sense.
Who replaces him in the England squad?
Tuchel has called up James Hill for the first time. The 24-year-old centre-back has played every minute of Bournemouth’s Premier League season and every game of their first Europa League campaign, having joined the club from Fleetwood in January 2022.
He is the second defender drafted in this week. Newcastle’s Dan Burn replaced Marc Guehi on Monday after the Manchester City defender withdrew with a hip injury, so Tuchel has now lost both of the centre-backs who would usually start.
That leaves Jarrad Branthwaite, Jarell Quansah, Burn, Hill and Ben White as the options at the back against Croatia. White is back in an England squad for the first time since March, and after finally speaking about the full story of his England exile this week, Thursday could be a chance for him to get minutes in the middle.
Why is Lewis-Skelly suspended?
It is the Nations League’s two-booking rule. Lewis-Skelly played in all four of England’s group games in September and October, but he was booked twice against Czechia, and two yellow cards in the competition bring a one-match ban.
He serves it against Croatia and is available again for Spain in Madrid on Sunday. Declan Rice, back in the squad after missing the last camp through injury, is the obvious man to take his place in midfield.
England go into Thursday second in the group with nine points from four games. A draw against Croatia is enough to reach the quarter-finals.
Ceadach O’Neill pulls out of the Northern Ireland squad
Further down the age range, Arsenal’s 18-year-old forward has withdrawn from Michael O’Neill’s squad for the games against Ukraine in Belfast on 14 November and Hungary in Budapest on 17 November. It is the same fitness problem that kept him out of the under-21s’ 5-2 win over Aston Villa on Sunday.
“We’re naturally disappointed to be without Ceadach for the final two games of the campaign. He has been a great asset to the squad in the last international window and everyone here wishes him a swift recovery,” the Northern Ireland manager said.
It ends a big few weeks for the teenager. He has four senior caps, came off the bench in the wins over Georgia and Ukraine last month, and made his first senior Arsenal appearance as a starter in the League Cup tie at Fleetwood, where he set up Viktor Gyokeres’ equaliser.
Good news in disguise for Arteta?
Nobody at London Colney wants to see players pulled out of squads, but this is about as gentle as international break news gets. Konsa plays one game instead of two, Lewis-Skelly gets a free week and O’Neill can be treated at home.
The bigger picture is the defence. William Saliba is still building back up after his own injury, so Konsa arriving at St James’ Park fresh matters more than a single Nations League game against Croatia. If he is fine for Spain on Sunday, Arteta will take that deal. For where the rest of the squad are playing, our guide to Arsenal’s internationals this month has every fixture.
