Tuesday 13 May 2014 09:20, UK
Roy Hodgson is hopeful that Ashley Cole will come out of international retirement if Leighton Baines suffers an injury ahead of the World Cup.
Hodgson paid tribute to Cole after the Chelsea left-back announced his international retirement on Sunday night. He said: "Among many difficult decisions I have had to make for my squad, not selecting Ashley was one of the hardest. "To amass more than a century of caps was a staggering achievement and he deserves enormous credit for the desire and brilliance that has shone through over the years he has represented his country. "Of course I must respect his decision to retire. He has been one of England's finest players but I want to look to the future. It has been one of the hardest decisions of my career." The decision to include Shaw has been praised by Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher, although he admits that Cole will be a tough act to follow. Carragher said: "I thought over the last couple of months - when Ashley was out the Chelsea team - that Hodgson would go with Shaw but obviously Ashley's form of late has given him a little bit of a problem. "He's gone for Shaw and with the fact that Baines looks like he's going to start, it's probably the right decision. "Ashley has been the best left-back England have ever had and possibly the world's best left-back for a few years as well. He played at the top level throughout his whole career so he should be proud of what he's achieved. "We'll miss him a lot, without a doubt."
