Post by Taxigirl on Aug 16, 2004 11:08:36 GMT
news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/internationals/3566938.stm
England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson is set to play John Terry and Ledley King against Ukraine - in preparation for using them in the World Cup qualifiers.
Rio Ferdinand is suspended and Sol Campbell and Jonathan Woodgate injured so Terry and King will get the nod.
"King did extremely well when he played against France at Euro 2004 while Terry is in good shape too," said Eriksson.
"They are not as experienced as Ferdinand and Campbell but they are a very good couple of players."
England meet Ukraine on Wednesday in a warm-up for September's qualifiers in Austria and Poland.
Woodgate will be disappointed to miss out on the game, at his club ground St James' Park, but Eriksson had words of comfort for the injury-plagued centre-back.
"I talked to him the other day and he hopes to be fit for the qualification games.
"I don't know if that is possible so I said I hoped he would stay fit for a while. He has been extremely unlucky and he is a great player."
Eriksson has called for fans to get behind his team for the game in Newcastle - England's first match since losing to Portugal in the Euro 2004 quarter-finals.
The match has struggled to capture the imagination of the north-east public, with thousands of tickets still unsold.
Eriksson, who vowed to put out his strongest available side, said: "I hope we have a big crowd in Newcastle. This match is not a nothing game.
"It is our only get-together before our World Cup qualifiers against Austria and Poland next month.
"It also means that I must look at players who can be our future. It is the only chance I have."
Eriksson said he will take into consideration players from Manchester United and Liverpool, who are involved in Champions League qualifiers.
The Swede said "I will start with what I think is the best team but I have to be careful with players like Gary Neville and Steven Gerrard.
"They will start the game but they have maybe five matches in 15 days so it is stupid to make them play 90 minutes."
Under Fifa's new rules Eriksson can only make six substitutions, meaning he will be unable to experiment as much as he has done in previous friendlies.
Eriksson, who has often changed all 11 players at half-time, has been critical of Fifa's decision to put a limit on substitutions.
"You have to accept it as it is a Fifa regulation. I don't agree with it but there we are," he stated.
England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson is set to play John Terry and Ledley King against Ukraine - in preparation for using them in the World Cup qualifiers.
Rio Ferdinand is suspended and Sol Campbell and Jonathan Woodgate injured so Terry and King will get the nod.
"King did extremely well when he played against France at Euro 2004 while Terry is in good shape too," said Eriksson.
"They are not as experienced as Ferdinand and Campbell but they are a very good couple of players."
England meet Ukraine on Wednesday in a warm-up for September's qualifiers in Austria and Poland.
Woodgate will be disappointed to miss out on the game, at his club ground St James' Park, but Eriksson had words of comfort for the injury-plagued centre-back.
"I talked to him the other day and he hopes to be fit for the qualification games.
"I don't know if that is possible so I said I hoped he would stay fit for a while. He has been extremely unlucky and he is a great player."
Eriksson has called for fans to get behind his team for the game in Newcastle - England's first match since losing to Portugal in the Euro 2004 quarter-finals.
The match has struggled to capture the imagination of the north-east public, with thousands of tickets still unsold.
Eriksson, who vowed to put out his strongest available side, said: "I hope we have a big crowd in Newcastle. This match is not a nothing game.
"It is our only get-together before our World Cup qualifiers against Austria and Poland next month.
"It also means that I must look at players who can be our future. It is the only chance I have."
Eriksson said he will take into consideration players from Manchester United and Liverpool, who are involved in Champions League qualifiers.
The Swede said "I will start with what I think is the best team but I have to be careful with players like Gary Neville and Steven Gerrard.
"They will start the game but they have maybe five matches in 15 days so it is stupid to make them play 90 minutes."
Under Fifa's new rules Eriksson can only make six substitutions, meaning he will be unable to experiment as much as he has done in previous friendlies.
Eriksson, who has often changed all 11 players at half-time, has been critical of Fifa's decision to put a limit on substitutions.
"You have to accept it as it is a Fifa regulation. I don't agree with it but there we are," he stated.