Gareth Southgate admits it is the right time for Joe Gomez to go home and “clear his head” after insisting the Liverpool defender had suffered an injury to rule him out of England’s Euro 2020 qualifier in Kosovo.

The 22-year-old was jeered by home fans as he came off the bench in Thursday’s 7-0 win over Montenegro at Wembley after being involved in an altercation with Raheem Sterling.

Sterling left Gomez with a scratch on his face following a fracas at St George’s Park on Monday in the aftermath of Liverpool’s victory over Premier League title rivals Manchester City the previous day.

“They (the players) are so tight. We’ve seen Raheem’s Twitter posts regarding Joe and I had a long chat with Raheem. He’s looking forward to Sunday’s game.

“So, if anything, I think it will just strengthen the bond of the players.

“That’s the team, they’re going through lots of different experiences with Bulgaria and with Montenegro that are only bringing them closer together as a group.”