England coach Gareth Southgate has explained leaving Chelsea winger Raheem Sterling out of his squad.
Southgate has also left out Chelsea teammates Reece James, Mason Mount and Ben Chilwell.
He explained, “I spoke with him a week or so ago. A general catch-up.
“He is not happy with his condition physically, carrying a hamstring problem. He wasn’t really in consideration.
“He doesn’t think he is operating at the level he needs.”
Southgate also said: “It (the short time between the season’s end and the qualifiers) hasn’t influenced selections at all. It is a difficult season for clubs, the players and us.
“We are always mindful of the welfare of the players and we have to allow players time to recuperate but not to de-condition physically.
“Like every other country we have important qualification matches on our way to Germany.
“We have picked a strong squad and the players always enjoy coming here. I think we will manage it as well as we can.”
England squad:
Goalkeepers: Sam Johnstone, Jordan Pickford, Aaron Ramsdale.
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Lewis Dunk, Marc Guehi, Harry Maguire, Tyrone Mings, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Kieran Trippier, Kyle Walker.
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Eberechi Eze, Conor Gallagher, Jordan Henderson, James Maddison, Kalvin Phillips, Declan Rice.
Forwards: Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka, Callum Wilson.
