Quantcast
Home   >   News   >   Arsenal injury news: Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka suffering ‘discomfort’

Arsenal injury news: Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka suffering ‘discomfort’

By on March 31, 2026

Declan Rice Bukayo Saka Arsenal

England boss Thomas Tuchel has revealed that Arsenal duo Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka suffered ‘discomfort’ that led to their withdrawal from the Three Lions squad.

Thomas Tuchel selected an expanded 35-man squad for the final training camp before naming his FIFA World Cup squad, with the initial group later joined by 11 senior players on Friday.

The England national football team manager had already allowed Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka a rest last week, opting not to involve them — along with nine others — in the 1–1 draw against Uruguay at Wembley Stadium on Friday.

Rice and Saka did report back to camp afterwards, with the former training on the grass on Saturday while the latter worked in the gym. However, Tuchel explained that they were still experiencing discomfort following their involvement in the EFL Cup final against Manchester City.

Both players underwent fitness assessments on Saturday and were subsequently sent home ahead of the friendly with Japan.

Tuchel also revealed that Rice has been operating at ’70 per cent’ for a period due to ongoing discomfort, adding that Saka is ‘the same’, as he strongly defended his decision to withdraw them from his final squad before selecting his 26-man group for the FIFA World Cup.

Injury scare for Mikel Arteta

Tuchel said, ‘They were both in discomfort in the assessment. It made no sense.

The England boss added: ‘They [Rice and Saka] both came. Declan was even out on the pitch. He did not come and say, ‘Guys, I’m going home. ‘ I heard there were camps where players did not even show up with boots and stuff — but they both came’

“Declan had a session together with Jude [Bellingham] on the pitch, tried, and said it doesn’t feel right. Why would I push him? What would we gain from that? Declan is a key player, Bukayo is a key player – why would I take this risk?’

Thomas Tuchel chose not to go into specifics regarding Declan Rice’s issue but admitted, ‘He feels a discomfort since quite a while, and he’s playing through it.

‘He is just now on the edge, where he thinks, ‘Does this make sense, what I’m doing here, to push through with 70 per cent [fitness] and push myself and push myself? ‘And the same with Bukayo.’