England: Joe Gomez to miss World Cup

Liverpool and England defender Joe Gomez will miss two big appointments at the end of the current season: the Champions League final with his club and also the 2018 World Cup with England. 20-year-old Gomez picked up an ankle injury during England's friendly match against the Netherlands in March and then missed Liverpool's matches in the Champions League quarter-finals and semi-finals. However, he did play in the Premier League matches against Stoke City and West Brom at the end of April, before deciding to undergo surgery for his injury. "Gutted to confirm that my season for both club and country is over having undergone successful ankle surgery," Joe Gomez said. "Been a tough few weeks trying everything possible to be available on the pitch to help the team. I'm going to do all I can to get back and be in the best possible shape for pre-season. The focus now is to support the team in the two biggest games of the season." Joe Gomez made 23 appearances for Liverpool this season after having failed to appear in any Premier League matches last season. Joe Gomez joined Liverpool from Charlton Athletic in the summer of 2015 for just 3.5 million pounds and he made five Premier League appearances during his first campaign at Anfield Road. Last season he had trouble recovering from an Achilles tendon injury, but now he seemed capable of fulfilling his potential with the Reds. He received his first call-up to the England senior squad in November 2017 after having represented the nation at most youth levels. England kick off their World Cup campaign with a match against Tunisia on 18 June. England are 18/1 at Bet365 to win the 2018 World Cup in Russia.