Hodgson names England squad for World Cup qualifiers

04 October 2012 11:18

Roy Hodgson has named Ryan Shawcross, Kieran Gibbs and Celtic goalkeeper Fraser Forster in his England squad for the forthcoming World Cup qualifiers against San Marino and Poland.

With John Terry now retired from international football, there had been plenty of speculation about who the fourth central defender would be.

Tottenham's Steven Caulker seemed like the obvious choice but he was named in Stuart Pearce's Under-21 squad on Wednesday, so Stoke's Shawcross has been picked for only the second time, having failed to win a cap when he was chosen for the friendly against Egypt by Fabio Capello in March 2010.

Gibbs, who has two caps from friendly encounters against Hungary and France, has replaced Ryan Bertrand in the squad and has been rewarded for his excellent performances for Arsenal this season.

Like Caulker, Jack Butland has been released to the Under-21s for their European Championship play-off with Serbia, leading to Celtic's Forster becoming a rare England selection from the Scottish Premier League.

In addition, Tottenham's Aaron Lennon has been called up despite having not played for England since the 2010 World Cup.

England squad

Goalkeepers: Fraser Forster (Celtic), Joe Hart (Manchester City), John Ruddy (Norwich)

Defenders: Leighton Baines (Everton), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Ashley Cole (Chelsea), Kieran Gibbs (Arsenal), Phil Jagielka (Everton), Glen Johnson (Liverpool), Joleon Lescott (Manchester City), Ryan Shawcross (Stoke), Kyle Walker (Tottenham)

Midfielders: Michael Carrick (Manchester United), Tom Cleverley (Manchester United), Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Adam Johnson (Sunderland), Aaron Lennon (Tottenham), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), James Milner (Manchester City), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal), Theo Walcott (Arsenal)

Forwards: Andy Carroll (West Ham), Jermain Defoe (Tottenham), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), Danny Welbeck (Manchester United)

Source: PA