How England could line up at Euro 2020 without injured duo Kane and Rashford

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer revealed the news England boss Gareth Southgate would have been dreading. With Harry Kane already in doubt to prove his fitness for Euro 2020, injury could also now rule Marcus Rashford out of this summer's competition. The United striker's back injury is more serious than hoped, Solskjaer revealed on Wednesday night, and Southgate must now start to seriously accept he will go into his second major tournament as England manager without his strongest team.

So how could England line up in their Euro 2020 opener? Rashford and Kane are the sixth and seventh, respectively, best WhoScored rated English players in Europe's top five leagues this season (10+ appearances) so who takes their place? Using our unique rating system, here is the best WhoScored rated England XI based entirely on performances in Europe's top leagues, excluding retired players.

Goalkeeper: Aaron Ramsdale (Bournemouth) - 6.76 rating

There has been plenty of conjecture about England's No.1 at Euro 2020 in recent weeks due to the questionable form of Everton's Jordan Pickford - the lowest WhoScored rated goalkeeper (6.36) in the Premier League (more than 10 appearances) this season. Many have called for Sheffield United's Dean Henderson to take Pickford's No.1 spot but Bournemouth's Aaron Ramsdale has flown under the radar. A return of 3.4 saves per game is the best of all English goalkeepers in the Premier League this season.

Right-back: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool) - 7.37 rating

Trent Alexander-Arnold has been tremendous for Liverpool since the beginning of last season and there should finally be no doubt he is England's first choice right-back. The Three Lions are well stocked in this position but Alexander-Arnold remains in a league of his own, particularly in terms of offensive output. The 21-year-old has reached double figures for assists for the second league campaign running. In fact, only Jadon Sancho has registered more assists than Alexander-Arnold (10) of all English players in Europe's top five leagues this season.

Centre-back: Chris Smalling (Roma) - 7.16 rating

Chris Smalling's decision to leave Manchester United and join Roma on a season-long loan deal has been a masterstroke, as the towering centre-back has quickly emerged as one of the best defenders in Serie A. Smalling's form, coupled with a lack of firing English centre-backs, has even forced Southgate to reconsider his stance on Smalling and consider him ahead of Euro 2020. The Three Lions head coach had previously ruled out a call up for the 30-year-old but has been out to see him for Roma in person this season. Smalling even has the best pass success rate (90.1%) of all English players in Europe's top 5 leagues this season.

Centre-back: Harry Maguire (Manchester United) - 7.09 rating

A centre-back pairing of Chris Smalling and Harry Maguire could have been at Old Trafford this season but the latter's arrival over the summer forced Smalling find regular playing time elsewhere. Maguire hasn't quite lived up to the billing as the most expensive defender of all-time but he has certainly improved things at the back for United. His impact is best illustrated by the fact Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has made him club captain after less than a year at the club. Maguire scored his first league goal for the club in Monday's 2-0 win at Chelsea and has impressively won 70.8% of his attempted aerial duels.

Left-back: Ben Chilwell (Leicester) - 7.02 rating

Ben Chilwell looked guaranteed to get the left-back role for England at Euro 2020 earlier in the season but the Foxes dwindling form of late has at least prised the door open slightly for emerging prospects like Brandon Williams and Bukayo Saka of United and Arsenal, respectively. Chilwell has played a direct hand in five goals in 21 league appearances this season (two goals, three assists) and only Alexander-Arnold (67) has registered more key passes than the 23-year-old (25) of English defenders in Europe's top five leagues.

Central midfield: James Maddison (Leicester) - 7.39 rating

James Maddison is in the same boat as team-mate and close friend Chilwell. The 23-year-old has played a key role in Leicester's push for a top-four finish this season with six goals and three assists in the Premier League this season but a slight dip in form has raised question marks about whether he is even England's best creative midfielder at the moment. Nevertheless, Maddison could be particularly effective for England from set-pieces, highlighted by the fact no player has created more goalscoring chances from deadball positions than the Leicester ace (33) in the Premier League this season.

Central midfield: Jordan Henderson (Liverpool) - 7.20 rating

Jordan Henderson is in career best form at the moment and Southgate will hope a hamstring injury suffered against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday is nothing serious. Henderson is having his most influential campaign in front of goal (eight goals and assists) since the 2014/15 season when he was directly involved in 15 goals for Liverpool. Five of this seasons goal contributions have impressively come in Henderson's last four appearances, earning the Premier League leaders five points in the process.

Central midfield: Jack Grealish (Aston Villa) - 7.43 rating

After failing to make Southgate's England squad for the final matches of 2019, it seemed unlikely Jack Grealish would make the plane for Euro 2020 but the Aston Villa captain has been in sparkling form since the turn of the year. Grealish ranks fifth in the Premier League for most key passes this season (68) and first of all English players in Europe's top five leagues. According to reports, Manchester United have now identified Grealish as their top midfield target ahead of Maddison.

Right wing: Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund) - 7.96 rating

As Jadon Sancho demonstrated against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday night, Southgate cannot afford to lose the 19-year-old to injury as well leading into this summer's major tournament. Sancho has remarkably played a direct hand in 26 goals in 20 league appearances this season and was the first player in Europe's top five leagues to reach double figures for both goals and assists. Sancho has also scored and assisted in nine separate league games this season, more than any other player on the continent.

Striker: Tammy Abraham (Chelsea) - 7.16 rating

With Jamie Vardy in international retirement, the next highest WhoScored rated English striker behind Harry Kane in Europe's top five leagues is Chelsea's Tammy Abraham. The 22-year-old has enjoyed an encouraging first season as Chelsea's first-choice striker with 13 goals in 24 league appearances but Frank Lampard has made it clear the club cannot solely count on the youngster. Abraham started the season in terrific form with seven goals in his first four league starts but has returned just two goals in his last 10 outings in the Premier League and is currently injured.

Left wing: Raheem Sterling (Manchester City) - 7.25 rating

Raheem Sterling is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury the the Manchester City forward will return well in time for Euro 2020. Southgate may even feel a period out will serve the 25-year-old well after hitting a downturn in form prior to injury. Sterling has scored 11 goals in the Premier League this season but has failed to net in each of his last five league appearances and has only been directly involved in a league goal in two of his last 14 outings.