Roy admits selection risk

Roy Hodgson: Could turn to England players to are not regulars with their clubs

Roy Hodgson admits he may have to rely on players who are not first-team regulars at their Premier League clubs during England's World Cup qualifying campaign.

The manager has named youngster Jack Rodwell in his squad for Wednesday night's international friendly with Italy in Switzerland but has concerns over whether Manchester City's new signing will be a regular starter for the league champions this season.

Hodgson has the same worries about Liverpool's Andy Carroll, whose future remains unclear following the arrival of new boss Brendan Rodgers at Anfield.

Risk

The England manager said: "I'll be honest, this year there'll be quite a few times I have to select players who won't be in their team.

"Jack Rodwell, I don't know how many starts he'll get at City.

"That's a risk but it's the nature of the Premier League. So few English players in the league and many of them playing for the same club."

He added: "Carroll's been good for us in training, he's been very enthusiastic. I spoke to Brendan Rodgers at length and he's training well, working hard, doing his best to break back into the team. As far as I'm concerned, that's good enough for me."

Hodgson also has concerns in the goalkeeping department, with Norwich shot-stopper John Ruddy expected to make his debut in Berne, while 19-year-old Jack Butland is also in line for his first cap even though his only senior experience has come in League Two with Cheltenham.

"The bottom line is we don't have that many goalkeepers to choose from anymore," said Hodgson.

"Go through the Premier League and see who's playing in goal. It's mostly foreigners.

"There's Robert Green and John Ruddy. And there's young Jack Butland, who has done very well but has only played for Cheltenham.

"Let's hope someone like Jack pops up and puts Joe Hart under pressure."

Challenge

Hodgson hopes some of the younger players in his squad can challenge for first-team spots as England target Brazil in 2014, with opening qualifiers against Moldova and Ukraine looming next month.

The manager said: "At the Euros I had quite a lot of players I don't have with me on this occasion.

"Hopefully some of the younger players will kick on and make life difficult for some of the guys who have been playing for some years."