Soccer-Palmer, Rice, Rashford among players out of England squad

​Cole Palmer, Declan Rice ​and Marcus Rashford are ‌among five ​players who have withdrawn from England's squad for impending Nations League fixtures because of injury, ‌the Football Association said on Monday. Tino Livramento and Kobbie Mainoo also pulled out of Thomas Tuchel's squad for the matches against Spain, the Czech ‌Republic and Croatia.

Everton midfielder James Garner and Nottingham Forest's Morgan ‌Gibbs-White have been called up as replacements. Palmer's withdrawal ends a brief return to Tuchel's plans after the 24-year-old was left out of England's World Cup squad this ⁠year.

Palmer played ​the full 90 ⁠minutes in Chelsea's defeat by Brentford on Friday and has responded strongly to ⁠his World Cup disappointment, rediscovering top form with four goals and two assists ​in seven appearances for Chelsea this season. England begin their Nations League ⁠campaign against newly crowned world champions Spain at Wembley on Saturday before travelling ⁠to ​Prague to face the Czech Republic on September 29.

Tuchel's side then take on Croatia in Rijeka on October 3 before hosting ⁠the Czechs at Wembley three nights later in Group A3. The extended ⁠three-week international window ⁠is the first under FIFA's revised match calendar, which has combined the traditional September and October breaks ‌into a ‌single period.