Spurs defender loses out to Stoke hard man in race for Chelsea captain’s vacant England spot as Arsenal and West Ham stars selected

Thursday, October 4, 2012
11:38 AM

Stoke City centre back Ryan Shawcross has benefitted from the international retirement of Chelsea captain John Terry by earning a call-up to Roy Hodgson’s 25-man squad for the forthcoming World Cup qualifiers against San Marino and Poland.

With the Blues defender no longer unavailable, 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 yesterday, so Stoke’s centre back 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.

Arsenal’s Kieran Gibbs is back in the squad after his return to fitness while Celtic goalkeeper Fraser Forster earns a first call-up.

San Marino visit Wembley next Friday before England travel to Warsaw to face Poland the following Tuesday.

Tottenham Hotspur winger Aaron Lennon is rewarded for his form so far this season and with selection for the first time since the World Cup of 2010. West Ham striker Andy Carroll - on loan from Liverpool - celebrates his return from injury by being named after missing the first two qualifiers against Moldova and Ukraine last month through early-season injuries.

England squad

Goalkeepers: Fraser Forster, Joe Hart, John Ruddy;

Defenders: Leighton Baines, Gary Cahill, Ashley Cole, Kieran Gibbs, Phil Jagielka, Glen Johnson, Joleon Lescott, Ryan Shawcross, Kyle Walker.

Midfielders: Michael Carrick, Tom Cleverley, Steven Gerrard, Adam Johnson, Aaron Lennon, Frank Lampard, James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Theo Walcott.

Forwards: Andy Carroll, Jermain Defoe, Wayne Rooney, Daniel Welbeck.