Czech Republic striker Matej Vydra will miss out on the Under-21 European Championships later this month after claiming Watford prevented him from taking part with the host nation.

The striker, who it is understood will rejoin the Hornets on a two-year loan deal, was called into coach Jakub Dovalil’s preliminary squad last week.

However, the cut-off point for teams to name their final 23-man squad is Sunday and the Watford Observer understands Vydra will not take his place with the rest of his team-mates.

Vydra, who has 15 full Czech caps to his name, had been expected to travel to Austria with the rest of the squad on Monday but did not make the trip.

The Czech Republic will be without Eintracht Frankfurt striker Vaclav Kadlec in their opener against Denmark on June 17 due to suspension and despite the fact Vydra has only trained individually since the Championship season ended on May 2, head coach Dovalil is desperate for the 23-year-old to be involved in the tournament.

One possible solution had been to train with Czech side Dukla Prague, but Vydra told iSPORT owner Gino Pozzo was against that idea.

He said: “The owner did not want me to train with a Czech club, he didn’t like the idea. I went to the gym and kept my fitness level. However, since May 2 I haven’t touched the ball and that would be a problem.

“The owner told me we start the pre-season on June 22 and that he wants me fully rested. Our goal before the last season was to get promoted, now the goal is to stay up because he knows that the first year in a new competition is terribly difficult. He gives everything for that, it is his top priority. He wants all the players rested.

“He counts on me and I don’t want to go against the club, against his decision no matter what. That would hurt me. The club is the one who pays me and it would be a shame to spoil my position after a successful season.”