Why is Rico Lewis not playing for England at the 2023 FIFA Under-20 World Cup?

England go into the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup as one of the big favourites, they have many talented young players who are already professionals in the Premier League.

Rico Lewis is one of those players who is considered a top star, plus he is already playing with one of the best Premier League teams, Manchester City.

Lewis’ pro career began a couple of years ago, debuting with Manchester City’s first team in 2022 after spending almost 9 years in their youth system.

Why isn’t Rico Lewis playing for England in the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup?

Unfortunately Rico Lewis will not be able to play because the tournament started before the end of the Premier League, that is the reason why he will not be able to play for England, his club Manchester City did not give him permission to play before the end of the season.

Without Lewis the options for the U-20 England team are limited, but they have good players who were mostly trained in the best football academies in France and most of them already have contracts.

Lewis has already represented England in multiple tournaments including U-16, U-18, U-19 and U-21 tournaments, it is likely that he will be ready to play for the big team in 2023.