Roy Hodgson has named the 23-man squad he hopes will carry England to Euro 2012 glory.
England are readying themselves for their first Euro appearance since 2004 and have been placed in a tough-looking group alongside France, Sweden and co-hosts Ukraine.
Hodgson has already admitted that he would consider anything less than a quarter-final appearance to be a disappointment.
In the end he has decided to include former national team skipper John Terry within his ranks, despite the Chelsea captain having been stripped of the armband by former coach Fabio Capello and still waiting on the outcome of a race-row trial involving Queens Park Rangers defender Anton Ferdinand.
Anton's brother Rio will play no part in Ukraine and Poland, though, and an international career which has spanned 15 years and 81 caps would appear to have been brought to an end.
Veteran performers such as Liverpool playmaker Steven Gerrard, Chelsea full-back Ashley Cole and Blues midfielder Frank Lampard will be offered another opportunity to grace a major tournament, while Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney makes the cut despite having to serve a two-match ban.
Joe Hart, Joleon Lescott, James Milner and Gareth Barry will be hoping to build on their domestic success with Manchester City and add to their Premier League winners' medal.
Phil Jones and Ashley Young are called up after impressive debut seasons at Manchester United, while Stewart Downing gets a chance to shine after finding his feet at Liverpool.
Gary Cahill of Chelsea, Liverpool's Glen Johnson and Everton's Leighton Baines make up the defensive hopefuls and Tottenham's Scott Parker is in contention for a midfield berth despite concerns regarding his fitness.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is a surprise inclusion, as he is yet to be capped at senior level, but the 18-year-old's performances for Arsenal suggest he is ready to make the step up alongside club colleague Theo Walcott.
Norwich goalkeeper John Ruddy will also be involved in the senior set-up for the first time following an impressive Premier League campaign and West Ham's Robert Green will hope to be a top-flight performer again by the time the competition gets underway.
Andy Carroll is rewarded for his fine form towards the end of the season with Liverpool with another international call-up and he will be competing with Manchester United's Danny Welbeck and Tottenham hot-shot Jermain Defoe for the right to partner Rooney - once he returns from suspension.
Spurs winger Aaron Lennon, Manchester City defender Micah Richards and Chelsea forward Daniel Sturridge are among the notable absentees, while Hodgson has decided against gambling on the fitness of Tottenham defender Kyle Walker and Aston Villa striker Darren Bent.
Sturridge has been placed on standby, along with Phil Jagielka, Jordan Henderson, Adam Johnson and Jack Butland.
Goalkeepers: Joe Hart (Man City), Rob Green (West Ham), John Ruddy (Norwich)
Defenders: Glen Johnson (Liverpool), Phil Jones (Man United), John Terry (Chelsea), Joleon Lescott (Man City), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Ashley Cole (Chelsea), Leighton Baines (Everton)
Midfielders: Theo Walcott (Arsenal), Stewart Downing (Liverpool), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Gareth Barry (Man City), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), Scott Parker (Tottenham), Ashley Young (Man United), James Milner (Man City)
Forwards: Wayne Rooney (Man United), Danny Welbeck (Man United), Andy Carroll (Liverpool), Jermain Defoe (Tottenham)
No comments:
Post a Comment