England have suffered another injury blow on the eve of their friendly with Germany after Jack Butland was forced to withdraw from the squad.

The Football Association announced on Thursday night that the goalkeeper had broken a finger in training. An FA statement added: “The goalkeeper has now returned to Stoke City to be assessed by his club’s medical staff.”

Butland’s injury continues a trend for England and their manager, Gareth Southgate, who has lost several players throughout the week. On Tuesday the Tottenham trio of Dele Alli, Harry Kane and Harry Winks were joined on the injury list by Raheem Sterling, Fabian Delph and Jordan Henderson.

Such is the list of players unavailable to Southgate, he could put together an XI consisting of those receiving treatment.

For Butland, this carries shades of a previous meeting with Germany. The 24-year-old fractured his ankle during a 2016 game against the Germans and missed a year of football as a result. He has returned to form and fitness and it was widely reported he would have started at Wembley.

The FA said Southgate would make no decisions over a replacement until after Friday’s game, leaving Joe Hart and Jordan Pickford as the contenders to face Germany.