Gary Lineker believes "outside shot" England may benefit at the World Cup from star players being fresh after injury-hit seasons.
Thomas Tuchel's England begin their bid to end a 60-year wait for silverware on June 17 when they start the summer tournament against Croatia in Dallas and will aim to go all the way in the United States.
Former Three Lions forward Lineker, who will host a daily TV show 'The Rest Is Football' on Netflix alongside Alan Shearer and Micah Richards throughout the World Cup, believes injuries for Bukayo Saka and Jude Bellingham over the course of the season may prove a blessing in disguise.
"I quite like the way Saka has returned to form at the end of the season," Lineker said at Netflix's London office in the West End last month.
"Saka's had his injuries, but I also look at some of our players and I think, especially the ones with spells out, normally you look at our players -- particularly from the Premier League -- and they look a little bit knackered.
"But a lot of our star players have had spells out whether it is Saka, Harry Kane has been rested quite a lot, the players playing abroad like Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford, both have been out quite a bit but also played in recent times and are looking fit and really strong. That could help us."
During a wide-ranging interview on life after he left the BBC last May and 'The Rest Is Football' being broadcast on Netflix, Lineker explained how a recent meeting with Tuchel that he could not speak about in too much detail gave him the belief that the German coach can handle the anticipated scrutiny on the horizon.
Tuchel's 26-man squad raised eyebrows in some quarters after playmakers Phil Foden and Cole Palmer were left out, but Lineker believes the ex-Chelsea boss is "strong" enough to navigate what lies ahead before the tournament.
Lineker said: "It is always the same and even when we get to the first games it will be about who they leave out before the game. It is just the nature of football because everyone has got a different opinion.
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"We had a meeting recently with Thomas Tuchel and Chatham House Rules and all that, but you can see he knows he has got to be strong. That is the nature of it."
Lineker's goals helped England reach the last four of the World Cup in 1990, which is the joint furthest they have gone since glory on home turf 60 years ago.
"When it's your team you can be more critical, but the one thing we all want is to do the damn thing and win it," Lineker added.
"It would be glorious, I think. I was five when we won it and have zero memory, so I would love it to happen in my lifetime. I think it will be tough this one, for lots of reasons, but I don't think it is impossible. I think we're with an outside shot."