World Cup: Roy Hodgson backs England's young guns to beat Uruguay
Thursday 19 June 2014 09:25, UK
Roy Hodgson insists England have "weapons" of their own as his side prepares to face Luis Suarez and Uruguay on Thursday evening.
Hodgson's 23-man squad landed in Sao Paulo on Wednesday morning ahead of the crunch Group D clash, in which Suarez is expected to return after missing his country's 3-1 defeat to Costa Rica in their opening game.
Much has been made of the Liverpool striker's return, but Hodgson insists he will tell his young side not to be afraid to go on the attack.
"We saw on Saturday night that even a top team like Italy got tested by the quality of our attacking play so we're not going to put any of our weapons down," he said.
"Any weapon we've got we are going to try and use."
Hodgson said he was unsure whether the Uruguay match should be regarded as the most important of his 39-year managerial career, but he understands what is at stake.
"Even though it is the group stages, this is knock-out football," he added.
"It is an important moment. We want to stay in the competition and to do that we've got to get results in the next two games. No-one is running away from that."
On the threat of Suarez, he said: "He does all the things you want a top player to do. So all we can do is make certain our defence is compact and we make it difficult for him in terms of not giving him space and the chance to do the things he wants to do.
"His return will be a big boost for them."
