Friday 20 March 2015 19:51, UK
Hull City midfielder Tom Ince has told Gareth Southgate he does not want to play for England U21s.
Ince has been on loan at Championship promotion hopefuls Derby since the start of February, having spent the first part of the campaign with their bitter rivals Nottingham Forest.
The 23-year-old has also informed Southgate he does not wish to be considered for this summer's European Championships in the Czech Republic.
"It's very much Tom's decision,” Southgate said. “He's obviously been involved in the England U21 side for a few years now and he's had a couple of campaigns.
"He's decided at this moment in time he doesn't want to be considered for selection. It's disappointing, he's a good player, we've liked working with him.
“He's been a big part of us qualifying, but we wish him well. Hopefully it's a decision that works out well for him.
"From our point of view we've got real strength in depth, so we're not short of people to come in and perform."
While Ince's advanced age effectively means his U21 career is now at an end, Southgate revealed he was delighted to offer a recall to Tottenham defender Eric Dier, who opted out of one of his squads in November.
Southgate added: "Eric felt he needed to go away and work on his game - he wanted to establish himself at centre-back and he's done that which is great credit to him.
"I did speak to him before this squad because I wanted to check he wanted to be a part of it, but he said all along it was a temporary thing and he needed more time to work on his game and he's delighted to be back in the fray."
Dier is part of a 24-man England U21 squad named by Southgate for two friendlies ahead of the European Championships.
England U21 face tournament hosts Czech Republic in Prague on March 27 before playing Germany at Middlesbrough's Riverside Stadium on March 30.
Full squad: Marcus Bettinelli, Jonathan Bond, Jack Butland; Calum Chambers, Eric Dier, Luke Garbutt, Ben Gibson, Carl Jenkinson, Michael Keane, Liam Moore, John Stones, Matt Targett; Tom Carroll, Nathaniel Chalobah, Jake Forster-Caskey, Will Hughes, Jesse Lingard, Alex Pritchard, Nathan Redmond, James Ward-Prowse; Patrick Bamford, Saido Berahino, Danny Ings, Callum Wilson.
