Tottenham midfielder Alex Pritchard withdraws from England Under-21 squad with ankle injury

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Alex Pritchard has withdrawn from the UEFA European Under 21 Championship due to injury, the FA has confirmed.

The 22 year old, who featured as a substitute during England's disappointing 1-0 defeat to Portugal last week, started against Sweden in Olomuc on 21 June but was replaced by eventual match-winner Jesse Lingard 10 minutes into the second half after sustaining a blow to the ankle during a challenge from Ludwig Augustinsson.

Pritchard was observed leaving Andruv Stadion on crutches and sporting a protective boot, with manager Gareth Southgate declaring that the problem did not look 'very good'.

Fears that the former Brentford loanee could miss the remainder of the tournament have now been realised. Per competition rules, however, England will not be able to draft in a replacement.

An FA statement read: "Alex Pritchard has been forced to withdraw from the England Under-21 camp through injury.

"The Tottenham Hotspur player will play no further part in the 2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship in Czech Republic. Competition rules state that no replacement player can be called into a squad after a team's first match in the final tournament."

After the news was announced, Pritchard tweeted: "Disappointed to be ruled out of the @UEFAUnder21 but will come back stronger. Wish all the boys the best of luck. #ThreeLions #EnglandU21s."

Southgate has already lost Saido Berahino for the summer after the West Brom striker sustained a knee issue during training. However, Everton defender John Stones is expected to be fit for the final Group B clash against Italy.

Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino, meanwhile, will hope that Pritchard can make a swift recovery ahead of the 2015/16 Premier League campaign.

The player made a very good impression during a season-long spell at Brentford last season, scoring 12 goals and registering seven assists in 47 appearances as the Bees narrowly missed out on a second successive promotion following defeat to Middlesbrough in the Championship play-off semi-finals.