Man Utd star Rashford reacts to England squad exclusion

Manchester United star Marcus Rashford has said the reason he hasn't been called up to head coach Gareth Southgate's England squad for the upcoming Nations League clashes against Italy and Germany was because of a "premature injury".

Having missed the last two teams, Rashford was back in contention for England after a strong start to the season at Manchester United.

It was reported on Wednesday night that England doctors were carrying out late fitness checks on Rashford in relation to a muscle injury before his exclusion was confirmed on Thursday when Southgate announced their 28-man squad.

Following his exclusion from the squad, Rashford took to his Twitter account on Thursday to confirm why he will not feature in upcoming games against Italy and Germany before reassuring England fans that his desire to represent the Three Lions has not changed.

"Good luck boys later today @ManUtd. When it comes to @England, every player wants to represent their country and I'm no different!

"Unfortunately I'm not ready yet as I suffered an early injury," Rashford tweeted.