Wayne Rooney named England football captain

England manager Roy Hodgson has announced Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney as the new England captain, succeeding Liverpool's Steven Gerrard who retired from international duty in July.

Hodgson also named four uncapped players in his squad for next week's international friendly against Norway and the Euro 2016 qualifier in Switzerland.



Arsenal's 19-year-old defender Calum Chambers will be joined by Jack Colback of Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur's Danny Rose and Aston Villa's Fabian Delph, all aged 24, as the new faces in the 22-man squad.

England host Norway at Wembley on Wednesday before they start their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign away to Switzerland on Sept.8.
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"It will be exciting but there will be some anxious moments to see how these players step up," Hodgson told a news conference on Thursday.

"We've been a bit unlucky in our first qualifier, it is arguably our hardest one (Switzerland away) and these players may not get the soft introduction they may have had.

"I don't think there is any reason for intrepidation. With these players we are bringing into the squad, and don't forget there's no Theo Walcott, Ross Barkley or Adam Lallana, I see no reason for us to be fearful."

Squad:

Goalkeepers: Fraser Forster (Southampton), Ben Foster (West Bromwich Albion), Joe Hart (Manchester City)

Defenders: Leighton Baines (Everton), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Calum Chambers (Arsenal), Phil Jagielka (Everton), Phil Jones (Manchester United), Danny Rose (Tottenham Hotspur), John Stones (Everton)

Midfielders: Jack Colback (Newcastle United), Fabian Delph (Aston Villa), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), James Milner (Manchester City), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal), Raheem Sterling (Liverpool), Andros Townsend (Tottenham Hotspur), Jack Wilshere (Arsenal)

Forwards: Rickie Lambert (Liverpool), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool), Danny Welbeck (Manchester United)

Reuters

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