Fabio Capello singled out Phil Jones, Jack Rodwell and man-of-the-match Kyle Walker for special praise after England completed an unbeaten 2011 with a 1-0 friendly win over Sweden at Wembley.
A first-half own-goal from Daniel Majstorovic after Gareth Barry's header was enough to secure the Three Lions' first triumph over the Scandinavians for 43 years. However, it was the younger members of Capello's starting line-up the England coach was most interested in as he looked ahead to Euro 2012.
"It's important to beat Sweden after 43 years but it was more important to see Jones, Rodwell and Walker play against a team which is really organised and difficult to play against," said Capello. "The answer that I received from the performance is really important for me. And these three players played really well."
Having only made his debut as a substitute in Saturday's win over Spain, Rodwell has made rapid strides over the last few days. Once again, he played with a freedom all too often missing from England stars at Wembley.
Now he must maintain that momentum in a struggling Everton side in order to have a chance of making Poland and Ukraine next summer.
"At the end of the season I will decide," said Capello. "I hope that all the midfielders will be fit. Rodwell is a really interesting player, a young player. The competition to play at the Euros will be really strong."
Jones is making himself indispensable with a series of outstanding performances, all in different position.
He took the Scott Parker role as the midfield anchor against Sweden but still found time for one burst forward that could have drawn comparisons with Duncan Edwards.
"I changed the system," said Capello. "It was important to see Jones in the position where Parker usually plays.
"It's different to the back four. He played really well."
Source: PA
