How the men at Hodgson’s disposal have fared this term.
With week seven of the Premier League now over there is another international break and England have two extremely important World Cup qualifiers coming up.
Manager Roy Hodgson has named the 23-man squad that will face Montenegro and Poland in the next 10 days, so here is an analysis of how those stars have gotten on for their clubs in 2013/14.
Goalkeepers
Fraser Forster (Celtic): Fans in England only seem to take notice of the Celtic man when the Scots play Barcelona in the Champions League, but has had a solid campaign in a league that the Hoops now win every year – 6/10.
Joe Hart (Manchester City): The calamitous fortune that seemed to inflict Hart last season has continued into this and a couple of dodgy performances has seen many calling for the 26-year-old to be dropped – 3/10.
John Ruddy (Norwich City): The usually reliable Ruddy had a poor game during the televised match against Chelsea on Sunday, meaning the high profile mistake should see Hart keep his place – 5/10.
Defenders
Leighton Baines (Everton): Another great start to the season for the left-back and despite the Toffees’ lapses in concentration at the back, Baines has been creative again – 8/10.
Gary Cahill (Chelsea): Was preferred by Mourinho in the early part of the season, but David Luiz is back in the side – not that Cahill had done much wrong – 6/10.
Ashley Cole (Chelsea): The usually superb full-back has been caught out on a few occasions this season, most notably by Andros Townsend, and has looked out of sorts – 5/10.
Phil Jagielka (Everton): The Toffees captain has had better showings and the Merseyside club’s continued lack of defensive stability could prove to be a worry soon – 5/10.
Phil Jones (Manchester United): Has not really had too many chances due to injury, but has been back in the United squad of late and has played solidly – 6/10.
Chris Smalling (Manchester United): Has been caught out on several occasions this term, particularly against rivals City and increasingly looks like a liability – 4/10.
Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur): Just when it seems the right-back has worked on defensive responsibilities the defender lapses; as was shown against West Ham United – 5/10.
COMMENTS