Pearce wants big names

Under 21 chief eyes Wilshere and Carroll call-ups

By Graeme Bailey - Follow me on Twitter @graemebailey    Last updated: 29th March 2011   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Pearce wants big names

Pearce: Wants big bames

We would look slightly amateurish maybe if we decide to leave our best players at home.

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England Under 21 coach Stuart Pearce has insisted he wants to call on his big names like Jack Wilshere and Andy Carroll for this summer's European Championship.

Both Wilshere and Carroll have emerged as regular members of the England squad under Fabio Capello.

But despite their increasing senior commitments, Pearce feels that because both players have played a part in qualification they should participate in Denmark this summer.

Both Arsenal and Liverpool are believed to have expressed their concern, but Pearce feels he should be allowed to take them.

As it is an official tournament, the clubs cannot prevent England from naming them but the Football Association is likely to have the final say on the matter.

But Pearce is adamant he wants them and, speaking after defeat to Iceland on Monday, he said: "Jack's been in this squad, he helped the squad qualify for the finals, and I know how good he is. The same with Andy Carroll, who's played three or four matches at this level.

"We would look slightly amateurish maybe if we decide to leave our best players at home because we generate this myth that we play more football than anybody else and all of a sudden maybe Spain turn up in our group and they might have a World Cup winner in their ranks.

"That would look rather silly I think."

One player who will not be considered is Arsenal's Theo Walcott, who would still be eligible.

"We feel as though he's had enough experience and deem him as a senior player so I won't view him for the tournament this summer," he explained.

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Comments (5)

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Tom Metcalfe (Middlesbrough fan) says...

Already, everyone individual with a stake in this has come out and given their opinion...to the media...Its almost like a public jury and they're all desperate to get the public on side. Wenger, Pearce, Capello and Wilshire have all gone public. What do other nations do in this situation? Would Spain have issues over drafting their next stars into their U21 squad for a major competition? Would clubs protest? We really should be looking at what other, more successful countries do in situations like this...? We're not the only nation with up and coming bright talent as Germany taught us in the World Cup and as Spain have demonstrated over the last 6 years!

Posted 13:51 29th March 2011

James Graham (Liverpool fan) says...

Please can someone explain these comments to me? "We would look slightly amateurish maybe if we decide to leave our best players at home because we generate this myth that we play more football than anybody else and all of a sudden maybe Spain turn up in our group and they might have a World Cup winner in their ranks. "That would look rather silly I think." One player who will not be considered is Arsenal's Theo Walcott, who would still be eligible. "We feel as though he's had enough experience and deem him as a senior player so I won't view him for the tournament this summer," he explained. So should we take our best players who can play at this level or not? Why even enter talks about the squad this early on, a lot can happen between now and the summer and the clubs might be happy for them to go! This early, they want to protect them and keep their minds on the Prem! Stuart, i'm a big fan of yours, you made me cry in 96 with pride, in 2011, with laughter!

Posted 12:14 29th March 2011

Alan Jones (Arsenal fan) says...

This is unbelievable! I don't understand how playing for the u21s is supposed to improve his senior England career, surely just playing for the senior team (not to mention Arsenal twice a week) is plenty. You only have to look at what happened to Walcott to know this is stupid. He also played for the u21s and ended up burned out and unable to compete in the EPL and as a result was left out of the world cup. Is it really worth risking the most promising player England has had in years for the sake of one u21s competition? I don't think so. This also sends a very bad message to the current u21s, Pearce is basically telling the whole world they aren't good enough and that he needs senior players to come in and hold their hands. That'll really give them the confidence they need won't it. It's no wonder England never win anything with fools like this in charge. By the way, if Wilshere were to play for both teams until he's no longer eligible for the u21s, he'll of played 5years of football without a break. Obviously this is impossible, which means Arsenal, who pay his wages, are going to be the ones who suffer. No wonder Arsene's "concerned". Come on Pearce, stop being so shortsighted and do what's best for the player and the country, not you're ego and you're CV!

Posted 11:39 29th March 2011

Drew C (Arsenal fan) says...

"We would look slightly amateurish maybe if we decide to leave our best players at home" and then when talking about Walcott "We feel as though he's had enough experience and deem him as a senior player so I won't view him for the tournament this summer". Is it just me that sees this as a massive contradiction?

Posted 10:27 29th March 2011

Simon Day (Arsenal fan) says...

Yeah, great idea. Burn out your best young player ahead of the Euros next year. And we wonder why we never get close to winning anything with this kind of backward thinking running our national teams.

Posted 09:50 29th March 2011
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