Joleon Lescott hopes he will continue to be paired with Phil Jagielka for England

Joleon Lescott is hoping he and Phil Jagielka can become mainstays at the heart of England's new-look back four.

Struggle

Lescott and Jagielka played from the start as England dropped another two points on the road to the 2014 World Cup in a 1-1 draw with Poland, but Lescott believes a testing qualification campaign could actually benefit the Three Lions in the long run. He added: "We never expected it to be easy and, in a way, hopefully it isn't that easy. "In previous qualifiers, we've strolled through to tournaments and not looked as effective when we've got there. "Maybe if we struggle to get there, but we do get to Brazil, hopefully it will stand us in good stead and it will be easier once there."