English football currently resembles one of those old Agatha Christie dramas with leading characters disappearing one after the other. After injuries to England strikers such as Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford and Tammy Abraham, three lions on a treatment table, the debate arose over whether Jamie Vardy would return to the England fold, answering an emergency call from Gareth Southgate. Vardy promptly pulled up lame, damaging his glute while thumping a clearance away. Vardy’s manager, Brendan Rodgers, sounded positive about his No 9 afterwards — “thankfully, his hamstring was fine” — but he has to be a doubt for Leicester City’s game away to Aston Villa in the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final on Tuesday. (Vardy was unlikely to play in the FA Cup against Brentford…

Source: The Times January 22, 2020 22:29 UTC