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Bentley, Young in England squad

September 01, 2007 00:00:00


Blackburn's David Bentley and Aston Villa winger Ashley Young are in England's squad to face Israel and Russia in the Euro 2008 qualifiers, reports BBC.
Bentley and Young, both 22, have been drafted in by coach Steve McClaren after David Beckham and Kieron Dyer were ruled out by injury.
Blackburn star Bentley was not picked for the friendly against Germany.
He was punished after his late withdrawal from the European Under-21 championships because of fatigue.
And his international career was shrouded in doubt after his controversial late pull-out from the tournament in Holland.
But with Beckham sidelined for six weeks with a knee injury and Dyer out with a broken leg, McClaren is short of alternatives and Bentley has made an outstanding start to the new campaign.
McClaren said Bentley had now paid the price, saying: "I thought it was the right decision to leave him out last time.
"He accepted that and he paid the consequences but this is a new squad and he is in it and deserves to be in it."
McClaren was upset Beckham is now set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines after his injury, sustained playing for LA Galaxy.
He said: "It is a big blow for us. He is a big player and we are coming up to big games and we need big players for big games.
"He is injured and how well he recovers and how fast he recovers and how he plays from there on we will see."
Wayne Rooney is already ruled out of the games, both at Wembley on 8 and 12 September, with a broken metatarsal in his foot.

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