England centre back Harry Maguire said he is fit and available to face Scotland in Friday’s Group D match at the European Championship after missing the opener due to an ankle ligament injury.

Victory for England would seal their place in the last 16 of the tournament with one game to spare, while defeat for Scotland would leave their hopes in tatters.

Maguire has been out for more than a month after picking up the injury in Manchester United’s 3-1 Premier League win at Aston Villa on May 9.

The 28-year-old was replaced by central defender Tyrone Mings in England’s 1-0 win over Croatia at the weekend.

“I feel good,” Maguire told British media. “I’ve been training and I’m looking forward to it. Obviously, the injury was a setback club football-wise. Internationally I wanted to come into this with a lot of games under my belt with full fitness. I’ve done a few sessions now and feel like my fitness is there, so I’m available for the game.”

Hoddle’s view

Former England boss Glenn Hoddle says underdogs Scotland will arrive under pressure to play a more offensive style after their opening loss against the Czech Republic.

“I think that changes the dynamic of this England game,” Hoddle told Betfair.

“If they’d have won (against the Czechs) I’d have fancied Scotland to draw, but now they’ll have to take risks and I think England will win.”

Croatia wary

Croatia will not assign a particular defender to stifle in-form Czech Republic forward Patrik Schick when they meet in Glasgow on Friday, assistant coach Vedran Corluka said.

Schick netted a superb brace in Monday’s 2-0 win over Scotland. “Schick is an outstanding player but we won’t man-mark him,” Corluka said.

Covid-19 cases

Slovakia defender Denis Vavro and another staff member have tested positive for Covid-19 ahead of Friday’s match against Sweden, head coach Stefan Tarkovic said on Thursday.