Tuchel managing Saka carefully as England build him up ahead of World Cup opener

Bukayo Saka is back in training with England’s World Cup squad but is not yet fully fit, with head coach Thomas Tuchel confirming the Arsenal winger is being carefully managed as he recovers from an Achilles injury that has hampered him since March.

Saka, 24, was among four Arsenal players — alongside Declan Rice, Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke — who joined Tuchel’s camp late on Saturday evening following the Champions League final, in which Arsenal lost to Paris Saint-Germain on May 30. The quartet missed England’s 1-0 warm-up win over New Zealand as a result.

“We still have to take a little bit of care for Bukayo, who had an injury in March and carried it through the club campaign,” Tuchel told a news conference ahead of the second warm-up match against Costa Rica in Orlando. “He made himself available at the end of the season and did so brilliantly, but he was managed in between matches. That continues a bit at the moment — we are building him up. We just came from training, and everyone was involved, including Bukayo.”

Saka’s Achilles problem meant he completed 90 minutes just once after March, limiting his role in Arsenal’s run to their first Premier League title since 2004. He has not represented England since November, having also withdrawn from the March friendlies against Uruguay and Japan due to the same issue.

Whether Saka features against Costa Rica remains uncertain, with Tuchel expected to use the game to trial the lineup closer to the one that will start England’s Group L opener against Croatia in Dallas on June 17. Saka has scored 14 goals in 48 appearances for England and has been a fixture in every major tournament since Euro 2020, making his fitness one of the most closely watched stories of the pre-tournament period.

England then face Ghana in Boston on June 23 before completing the group stage against Panama in New Jersey on June 27.