... while English football royalty was also present in the form of former captain David Beckham, Sir Bobby Charlton and Peter Shilton, all of whom were honoured at half-time

Our message to the players has been that they have to be brave, and he took that very much on board,’ said Hodgson. But will the manager be so brave as to start the 18-year-old in the opening game?

Judging by what Hodgson was saying at Wembley, it seems likely he will select James Milner ahead of Theo Walcott and then it becomes a choice between Oxlade-Chamberlain and Stewart Downing on the left.

The smart money has to be on Downing, for France anyway.

It was suggested to Hodgson that the selection of Milner ahead of Walcott pointed to a more cautious approach.

‘They are different types of player,’ said Hodgson. ‘The thing about Theo is that he has had quite a few chances in the team. It seems to me that quite often his name will come up in these situations.

‘If I opt for Milner and it doesn’t go well, I should have played Walcott. If I opt for Walcott and it doesn’t go well, I should have played Milner. I’m not trying to be clever.’

Walcott clearly has some more work to do before Hodgson will trust him to start. As for the others, they just need to avoid any setbacks.

« Previous12345678910Next »