Crystal Palace star Eberechi Eze says his injury ahead of Euro 2020 may have been the result of fate.

The attacking midfielder suffered a ruptured achilles on the training ground with Palace.

Many of his teammates were in tears when they witnessed the incident, and it took Eze a long time to return to his best form.

Now back with England for their Euro 2024 qualifiers, Eze spoke about that ordeal and stated: “In training, we were playing small-sided games and I received the ball and went to push off and I just felt a pop.

“It felt like someone had kicked me or someone behind me had stepped on my ankle but I looked around and no one was there - so I knew it was serious. I had done my injury, gone inside, had an assessment from the doctor who said I had done my achilles. I asked for my phone to tell my wife and saw I had the message that I was in the provisional squad for England.

“Though it is a sad situation … I look at things a bit different. I looked at it as though I was on the right trajectory. I understood I was doing the right thing, I saw it as another hurdle so the focus was to keep going."

He added: “Watching the team was an inspiration, for sure.

“I found myself at peace because I understood I wasn't meant to be there for whatever reason."