Page last updated at 22:19 GMT, Monday, 23 March 2009 |
England defend selection of King | |||||
The Football Association has defended Fabio Capello's decision to select Tottenham defender Ledley King for the matches against Slovakia and Ukraine. King has a chronic knee injury which severely restricts his ability to train and Spurs boss Harry Redknapp is widely reported to be against the call-up. An FA spokesman said: "The England management will take no risks. "They fully understand Ledley's injury situation but they want to have a close look at him." King, who won the last of his 19 England caps in June 2007, has started 22 games for Tottenham this season and turned in a string of impressive performances.
But the 28-year-old's right knee swells up after strenuous exercise, making training all but impossible. The FA spokesman added: "Ledley has not previously been part of a Fabio Capello squad and we wanted to see him in the team environment. "He will be monitored during the week by the England and Tottenham medical staff before any decision on training or playing is made." England take on Slovakia in a friendly on Saturday before hosting Ukraine in a World Cup qualifier the following Wednesday. And, King aside, Capello should have a full-strength squad to choose from as his squad begin training at Arsenal's London Colney complex on Tuesday.
Everton's Leighton Baines will get his first experience of training with the seniors, while Manchester United keeper Ben Foster and Tottenham winger Aaron Lennon return after lengthy absences. Capello has already pledged to use his maximum six substitutes against Slovakia as he attempts to keep his players as fresh as possible for the Ukraine match. "The Ukraine game is very important to us," said the Italian. "Their league only started at the beginning of March so their players will be very fresh. "Ours are a little bit tired. But I think the fans will help us this time. We will have 12 players on the pitch." | |||||
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