England manager Sven Goran Eriksson today announced a large squad for the England’s clash with Spain on February 28th.
The lineup consists of six new caps including Arsenal’s Ashley Cole; the West Ham trio of Joe Cole, Frank Lampard and Michael Carrick; Sunderland’s Gavin McCann; and, perhaps most surprisingly of all, Charlton’s Chris Powell.
Powell is one of three left-sided defenders named - in recent times the left-back position has proved a trouble spot for England.
In a press conference this afternoon Eriksson defended his decision to include the 31-year-old Powell. "I saw him twice or three times and he is a natural left defender, so why not see?" Eriksson said.
When asked about the large size of the squad Eriksson said: "We saw a lot of games in the last five weeks. I am sure we do not know everything about the English players. One reason we took a lot of players is to see them, to know them."
One thing the new boss did not reveal today was the identity of his first captain."I might know but I will not tell you," he quipped.
AfterSpain , England face back-to-back World Cup qualifiers against Finland and Albania in March. They are currently bottom of their group.
Goalkeepers:David Seaman (Arsenal), Nigel Martyn (Leeds), David James (Aston Villa), Richard Wright (Ipswich)
Defenders:Gary Neville (Manchester United), Phil Neville (Manchester United), Wes Brown (Manchester United), Rio Ferdinand (Leeds United), Sol Campbell (Tottenham), Michael Ball (Everton), Jamie Carragher (Liverpool), Ashley Cole (Arsenal), Ugo Ehiogu (Middlesbrough), Chris Powell (Charlton), Kieron Dyer (Newcastle United)
Midfielders:David Beckham (Manchester United), Paul Scholes (Manchester United), Steve McManaman (Real Madrid/Spa), Michael Carrick (West Ham), Joe Cole (West Ham), Frank Lampard (West Ham), Ray Parlour (Arsenal), Nicky Butt (Manchester United), Gavin McCann (Sunderland), Nick Barmby (Liverpool)
Forwards:Emile Heskey (Liverpool), Michael Owen (Liverpool), Robbie Fowler (Liverpool), Andy Cole (Manchester United), Teddy Sheringham (Manchester United), Kevin Phillips (Sunderland)
