Jamie Vardy has left the door open for a possible return to the England setup one day — but insists he'd rather see the younger generation get the minutes ahead of him.
The Leicester striker's last appearance in an England shirt came when Gareth Southgate's men were knocked out of the 2018 World Cup semi-finals by Croatia, which saw Vardy turn his full attention to club football instead.
Since that semi-final in Moscow, Vardy has remained at the top of his game and is one of the Premier League's most lethal strikers.
Just before the coronavirus pandemic suspended football, Vardy was once again being tipped for another England call-up, especially when Southgate was in the midst of an injury crisis up top, with captain Harry Kane and Marcus Rashford both out with long-term knocks.
This led to calls for Vardy to make an emphatic return for England in preparation for the now postponed Euro 2020.
However, with the tournament pushed back a year, and key men fully recovered from injury, the chance for a Vardy return seems unlikely but the 33-year-old maintains to never say never.
'We've never totally closed the door, we made that clear,' he told The Athletic. 'But there are a lot of really good, young England forwards out there and they'd benefit more — just say if I was there getting picked, I'm taking one of their places.
'I've definitely benefitted from getting a full summer, relaxing, just completely clearing your head. It just gives your body and your mind a complete shut-off.'
Tammy Abraham remains on the fringe of Southgate's squad and could be afforded opportunities at next summer's tournament if he keeps up his impressive form this season.
Everton's Dominic Calvert-Lewin is another name that could break into the squad should Vardy opt to stand down.
Vardy has scored seven goals in 26 appearances for England, having made his debut in 2015.
This season Vardy has scored an impressive 19 goals in 26 Premier League appearances and is the leading scorer in the division ahead of Arsenal's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Liverpool's Mohamed Salah.