BECKHAM NAMED IN ENGLAND SQUAD

England head coach Steve McClaren has named his squad for next week's friendly match with Germany at Wembley Stadium and former captain David Beckham is included in the 28-man squad.

The main news coming from the announcement is that the Portsmouth duo of goalkeeper David James and centre back Sol Campbell have both earned recalls.

England Under-21 defender Steven Taylor also gets his first call up to the senior squad after his heroics at the Under-21 European Championship in Holland this summer.

"Steven has been playing very well for Newcastle and was outstanding during the Under-21s tournament in Holland," said McClaren.

“He was with us for the B game against Albania at the end of last season and I was hugely impressed with his attitude and ability.”

Meanwhile, Campbell, whose last game was against Sweden at the World Cup, and James, who was last in goal against Jamaica last June, are very familiar to McClaren having earned over 100 caps between them.

“Sol is a player with vast experience at international level. He had a very strong season at Portsmouth last year," added McClaren.

“I always maintained that I wasn’t closing the door on Sol. I know he won’t let England down and I’m very pleased to welcome him back into the squad.”

He continued: "David showed excellent and consistent form for Portsmouth last season, that's why he is back in the squad.

“His attitude and professionalism has been first-class throughout this period. I also watched him in action this week against Manchester United, he is a top-class goalkeeper and deserves his recall."

Blackburn Rovers midfielder David Bentley, who was included in McClaren's last squad, is left out this time.

"I’ve spoken to David today and explained my reasons for leaving him out of the squad this time.

"This followed a conversation I’d had with him before he made his decision to withdraw from the Under-21 European Championships in Holland. I made it clear today that I was disappointed with his decision to not travel to the tournament with his team-mates. That’s why he was left out of today’s squad for the Germany game.

"As far as I'm concerned, that’s the end of the matter.

“It’s up to David now to work hard to be included for the future qualifying matches. He’s a player with a lot of ability who did very well for the B team against Albania at Burnley in May.

“I’ve told him I will be keeping a close eye on his form before naming the squads for the autumn fixtures."
England squad to face Germany
Goalkeepers
Paul Robinson (Tottenham Hotspur) David James (Portsmouth) Scott Carson (Aston Villa on loan)
Defenders
Micah Richards (Manchester City) Wes Brown (Manchester United) Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United) John Terry (Chelsea) Ashley Cole (Chelsea) Sol Campbell (Portsmouth) Steven Taylor (Newcastle United) Phil Neville (Everton) Nicky Shorey (Reading)
Midfielders
David Beckham (LA Galaxy) Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) Frank Lampard (Chelsea) Joe Cole (Chelsea) Shaun Wright-Phillips (Chelsea) Michael Carrick (Manchester United) Gareth Barry (Aston Villa) Stewart Downing (Middlesbrough) Kieron Dyer (West Ham United) Owen Hargreaves (Manchester United)
Forwards
Alan Smith (Newcastle United) Michael Owen (Newcastle United) Peter Crouch (Liverpool) Darren Bent (Tottenham Hotspur) Andrew Johnson (Everton) Jermain Defoe (Tottenham Hotspur)