Gareth Southgate has ‘racehorse trainer’s eye’ for England injuries

• Manager fears players may try to mislead him over fitness
• Jamie Vardy looks likely to miss quarter-final with Sweden

Gareth Southgate has said he will have to adopt “a racehorse trainer’s eye” before England’s World Cup quarter-final against Sweden to make sure none of his players mislead him about their fitness.

As the team prepare to fly to Samara for Saturday’s game, Jamie Vardy’s hopes of playing any part are looking increasingly bleak and a number of other players, among them Kyle Walker and Ashley Young, are being closely monitored by England’s medical staff after Tuesday’s victory against a Colombia side described by John Stones as “probably the dirtiest team I’ve ever come up against.”

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