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But a despondent Dario Gradi has ruled him out of the game barring a major striker crisis ahead of the match. He, along with many managers, did not see any sense in playing midweek friendlies at this important time of the season.
"I've written him off already as he's not going to be in any fit state on Saturday. He won't start the game certainly unless I'm desperate for players.
"It is a ridiculous state of affairs that the players are going at this stage of the season. We have an absolutely vital game this weekend and the preparations as a result are poor."
Thankfully, Dean Ashton came through his England under-21 game in Sweden unscathed last night, but the boss will be hoping David Vaughan will be okay for the weekend after starting for Wales in Budapest tonight.
This raises the question: Why can't Dario do 'a Fergie' and make his players unavailable for selection for international matches?