Houllier sings Walker´s praises

Aston Villa manager Gerard Houllier has praised full-back Kyle Walker following his call up to the England squad.

Walker is currently on loan at Villa Park from Tottenham Hotspur, having spent the first half of the season at Queens Park Rangers.

And he has coped well with the transition from Championship to Premier League, catching the eye with some marauding runs from right back as well as notching two well-taken goals, against Sheffield United in the FA Cup and Fulham in Saturday’s 2-2 league match.

Walker’s form has also impressed Fabio Capello, who has rewarded the 20-year-old with a first call up to England’s senior squad.

He will now be hoping to make his England bow against Denmark at Parken on Wednesday, and Houllier sees no reason why a bright future should not await the Sheffield-born youngster.

“He can strike the ball, he can also burst forward and he can defend,” Houllier said.

“He showed some international quality because he is fast and he is quick, he can defend and he can burst through and his use of the ball is good.”

“The full-backs in modern football have a lot of the ball so they need to be good footballers.”

The Frenchman also revealed he believes there is still more to come from Walker.

“He’s not the finished article. Glen Johnson is probably ahead of him. But this is his first experience in the Premier League and he’s got to build on that,” Houllier said.

Villa striker Gabriel Agbonlahor has pulled out of Capello’s squad for personal reasons.

Also out are Steven Gerrard, Rio Ferdinand, Ben Foster and Peter Crouch. West Ham duo Robert Green and Carlton Cole have been called up.