England Under-21 coach Gareth Southgate names squad v Kazakhstan
Thursday 1 October 2015 15:00, UK
England Under-21s head coach Gareth Southgate has named a 23-man squad for his side's European U21 Championship qualifier at home to Kazakhstan this month.
England face only one game in October, with the Ricoh Arena in Coventry hosting the first home qualifier of the new season.
And Southgate has been able to select the majority of the squad who began the campaign with victories over USA U23s and Norway last month.
One player who will not be involved is Tottenham midfielder Dele Alli who has been called into the senior England squad for next week's European qualifiers against Estonia and Lithuania.
There is a return for Bury's on-loan goalkeeper Christian Walton, Everton defender Brendan Galloway and Arsenal's on-loan Hull striker Chuba Akpom.
Of Galloway's inclusion, Southgate said: "Brendan's got in again, he's another product of Milton Keynes' academy (like Alli) which is another feather in their cap. He was in our squad last month but was injured. We're looking forward to working with him.
"He's a versatile player, he's playing at left-back at the moment but can play centre-back and in midfield. He's another good character, a good type, which gives him a chance to succeed."
There is also a recall for midfielder Lewis Baker - currently on loan at Dutch club Vitesse Arnhem from Chelsea - a year after his previous involvement with the U21s for the Euro play-off with Croatia last October.
On Alli's promotion to Roy Hodgson's squad, Southgate told Sky Sports News HQ: "He is someone we know a lot about from his progression at Milton Keynes junior teams.
"He has been really well looked after there and now at Tottenham and he's adapting to life in the Premier League but he's only had three starts there so you have to be cautious in terms of how much extra pressure we put on him.
"But he has adjusted very well to that - I know Tottenham are delighted with him - and I'm sure he will have a fantastic experience working with the seniors this month."
Southgate's new-look squad began the season with a 1-0 win over USA's Olympic hopefuls in Preston, courtesy of James Wilson's second-half winner before captain James Ward-Prowse's penalty secured three points against Norway in the Euro qualifier.
ENGLAND U21 SQUAD to face Kazakhstan on Tuesday October 13;
Goalkeepers: Angus Gunn (Manchester City), Jordan Pickford (Preston North End, loan from Sunderland), Christian Walton (Bury, loan from Brighton & Hove Albion)
Defenders: Calum Chambers (Arsenal), Eric Dier (Tottenham Hotspur), Brendan Galloway (Everton), Joe Gomez (Liverpool), Kortney Hause (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Dominic Iorfa (Wolverhampton Wanderers) Jack Stephens (Middlesbrough, loan from Southampton), Matt Targett (Southampton)
Midfielders: Lewis Baker (Vitesse Arnhem, loan from Chelsea), Nathaniel Chalobah (Napoli, loan from Chelsea), Jake Forster-Caskey (MK Dons, loan from Brighton & Hove Albion), Ruben Loftus-Cheek (Chelsea), James Ward-Prowse (Southampton)
Forwards: Chuba Akpom (Hull City, loan from Arsenal), Jordon Ibe (Liverpool), Solly March (Brighton & Hove Albion), Nathan Redmond (Norwich City), Duncan Watmore (Sunderland), James Wilson (Manchester United), Cauley Woodrow (Fulham)
