Despite an injury scare against West Ham United on Saturday, Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers believes James Maddison will be fit for the World Cup.
The 25-year-old scored in the eighth minute of the match at London Stadium but was replaced in the 25th after appearing to strain his hamstring.
At the time, there were concerns that Maddison would miss England’s next championship.
However, speaking after his side’s 2-0 victory in the English capital, Rodgers said that the attacker’s substitution was “precautionary”, as he was suffering from “a little soreness” on his knee.
“He’s fine. It was just precautionary, a little soreness on the side of the knee. He hasn’t trained a lot this week. He’s ok,” Rodgers told reporters after the match.
Maddison has now scored seven goals and registered four assists in 13 Premier League appearances during the 2022-23 campaign, with his form earning him a spot in the England squad for the 2022 World Cup.
The attacker has not played for the Three Lions since his debut in November 2019, but he will be on the plane to Qatar, providing that he is able to prove his fitness.
Harvey Barnes, who has not been nominated to the squad for the international competition, scored Leicester’s second goal against West Ham on Saturday afternoon.
England manager Gareth Southgate stated that Maddison’s “outstanding” form for the Foxes this season required him to be included in the squad for the tournament.
“I don’t think he was in contention before the Euros because of a hip problem. His inclusion was a fair debate in September “Southgate told reporters following the announcement of his squad.
“He’s always been up against some good players in that area of the pitch, and there have been moments we were playing 4-3-3 with no No 10, so his profile didn’t quite fit.
“He’s playing exceptionally well, we like the fact he finds those pockets of space, he gets turned and plays forward. Not enough players do that in this day and age.
“His set-piece delivery is exceptional, and he can score from long range. That is another difference between him and some of our other players against low-block defenses.”
England will begin their World Cup campaign against Iran on November 21, followed by matches against the United States and Wales in the group stage.
