England U21s lose Wilshere, Carroll

Andy Carroll and Jack Wilshere have not been named in the England squad for June’s Under-21 European Championships in Denmark.

Wilshere and England have seemingly bowed to considerable pressure from Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who has fought hard to prevent the 19-year-old from taking part.

Wenger believes the tournament could jeopardise Wilshere’s long-term fitness following his first full season as an Arsenal regular and the midfielder has now made himself unavailable.

Liverpool centre-forward Carroll has been ruled out through injury.

“Andy Carroll and Jack Wilshere will not be part of the Under-21 squad which travels to Denmark. Andy has been ruled out through injury,” Under-21 manager Stuart Pearce said.

“I spoke to Jack last week and he explained that while he told me in March that he wanted to be part of the squad, he now feels he is not in the best condition to take part in the finals.”

“That is based on the number of games he has played for Arsenal this season, sports science data which Jack was presented with last week and concerns he has for his fitness looking ahead to next season.”

“Jack has always expressed his enjoyment at being involved with the Under-21 squad, and while I am disappointed not to have him with us for the finals I’ve accepted the situation.”

“I am very conscious of the importance of looking after all our players, and that is why I have frequent conversations with club managers throughout the season.”

Among the players to be included in the 23-man squad were Manchester City defender Micah Richards, Arsenal fullback Kieran Gibbs, Manchester United forward Danny Welbeck and Sunderland midfielder Jordan Henderson, who have all been capped at full international level.

England will submit a final squad to UEFA on June 1, before their first match against Spain 11 days later.

Squad: Goalkeepers: Frankie Fielding (Derby County), Jason Steele (Middlesbrough), Alex McCarthy (Reading).

Defenders: Ryan Bertrand (Chelsea), Kieran Gibbs (Arsenal), Phil Jones (Blackburn Rovers), Michael Mancienne (Chelsea), Micah Richards (Manchester City), Chris Smalling (Manchester United), Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur).

Midfielders: Marc Albrighton (Aston Villa), Tom Cleverley (Manchester United), Jack Cork (Chelsea), Jordan Henderson (Sunderland), Henri Lansbury (Arsenal), Fabrice Muamba (Bolton Wanderers), Jack Rodwell (Everton), Danny Rose (Tottenham Hotspur), Scott Sinclair (Swansea City).

Forwards: Nathan Delfouneso (Aston Villa), Daniel Sturridge (Chelsea), Danny Welbeck (Manchester United), Connor Wickham (Ipswich Town).