• Euro 2012

Oxlade-Chamberlain named in England Euro 2012 squad

Roy Hodgson has made some big decisions in his England squad for Euro 2012 © PA Photos

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Roy Hodgson officially named his England squad for the Euro 2012 Championship on Wednesday, and the most significant name included in the final 23-man selection was that of Arsenal's Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

The Arsenal youngster, who has made six league starts for Arsenal, is yet to make his full England debut having featured eight times for the Under-21s. He has shown glimpses of his quality for the Gunners, tasting Champions League football earlier in the campaign, and he is joined in the squad by Arsenal team-mate Theo Walcott.

England will aim to emerge from a group involving France, Sweden and Ukraine at Euro 2012 this summer, and Hodgson has made a series of big decisions to stamp his authority on a squad left without leadership following the resignation of Fabio Capello.

Details of Hodgson's squad began to leak on Tuesday evening, with Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand revealing to the Sun that he would not be picked for the summer tournament in Ukraine and Poland.

Ferdinand's loss proved to be John Terry's gain, with the Chelsea man selected despite having his captain's armband stripped earlier in the campaign. Terry is facing a hearing, scheduled for after the Euros, regarding an allegation of racial abuse towards Rio's brother Anton, something the Chelsea man firmly denies.

Ferdinand is now likely to never play at a European Championship having not been selected for Euro 2000, missed Euro 2004 through suspension and failed to qualify for Euro 2008 under Steve McClaren.

Elsewhere in Hodgson's defensive selections, Tottenham's Kyle Walker was a known absentee due to a toe injury but Manchester City right-back Micah Richards has also been omitted. Glen Johnson and Phil Jones will contest the right-back spot, with Leighton Baines providing cover to Ashley Cole on the opposite flank. Gary Cahill and Joleon Lescott will battle to partner Terry at centre-back, while John Ruddy joins the squad as goalkeeping cover.

In midfield, Scott Parker had been a major doubt after it was revealed he was having injections on a troublesome Achilles. The Tottenham man, who skippered England in their last outing, does make the 23, but there is no place for Paul Scholes who had been an odds-on favourite to be named.

The old heads of Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Gareth Barry do feature, as does Stewart Downing - perhaps surprisingly so after a tough season at Liverpool.

Hodgson's key selections up front centred on his target-man options, with 22-goal Peter Crouch overlooked for Liverpool's £35 million man Andy Carroll, who has scored once in three England appearances. With Wayne Rooney suspended for the opening two matches, Carroll will contest a starting spot with Jermain Defoe and Danny Welbeck.

England squad:
Goalkeepers
Robert Green (West Ham United)
Joe Hart (Manchester City)
John Ruddy (Norwich City)

Defenders
Leighton Baines (Everton)
Gary Cahill (Chelsea)
Ashley Cole (Chelsea)
Glen Johnson (Liverpool)
Phil Jones (Manchester United)
Joleon Lescott (Manchester City)
John Terry (Chelsea)

Midfielders
Gareth Barry (Manchester City)
Stewart Downing (Liverpool)
Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)
Frank Lampard (Chelsea)
James Milner (Manchester City)
Scott Parker (Tottenham Hotspur)
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal)
Theo Walcott (Arsenal)
Ashley Young (Manchester United)

Forwards
Andy Carroll (Liverpool)
Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)
Daniel Welbeck (Manchester United)
Jermain Defoe (Tottenham Hotspur)

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