England handed major Luke Shaw boost ahead of Euro 2024 opener | OneFootball

England defender Luke Shaw has returned to full training ahead of their Euro 2024 opener against Serbia.

Gareth Southgate's side are set to kick off their European Championship campaign on Sunday, when they face Serbia in their first game of three group stage games.

Though some players, such as Harry Maguire, were not able to shake off injuries in time for the Euros are were left out of the Three Lions' 26-player squad, Shaw has been spotted taking part in full training as he steps up his recovery from injury.

The Manchester United defender was pictured with his teammates in an open training session at England's training base in Jena on Tuesday, instilling hope that he may be available to play sooner rather than later.

However, his exact return date has not yet been revealed, and he could still be far from a return given he has not played a minute of competitive football since February.

Shaw is back in training / Richard Pelham/GettyImages

He is the only recognised left-back in the England squad, and so his recovery would signify a huge boost for Southgate's plans. The defender made just 12 appearances in the Premier League during the 2023/24 campaign after suffering from a spate of muscle injuries.

Shaw did make a brutally honest assessment of his injury when speaking to media after being selected as part of Southgate's final squad, saying he often made returns 'too quick'.

He said: "I got a few people coming up to me, saying 'how can you not be fit for United but fit for England?' No one knew the situation. I was actually very close to returning to team training."

There is hope that Shaw will be available when England take on Denmark in their second game of the group stage. Kieran Trippier is expected to switch from right to left in his absence having played there in warm-up matches.