Jagielka to withdraw from England squad

Phil Jagielka is expected to pull out of the England squad to face Spain at Wembley on Saturday.

The 29-year-old has been playing for Everton with a hairline fracture to a toe and has received a number of painkilling injections to get through recent games.

Ideally the defender needs a break from matches and it's expected that once the England medical staff examine him he will return to Everton for treatment.

Jags was expected to replace John Terry in the starting line-up against Spain, not due to his alleged confrontation with Anton Ferdinand, but because Fabio Capello wants to rotate his squad a bit over the next couple of games to take a closer look at his options ahead of the European Championships next year.

So in that scenario, its sad news for Jags as he will miss out on an opportunity to impress the England manager, but I can't help but think this is good news for Everton as it gets some much needed time off.

I realise that sounds a tad hypocritical considering I usually complain about the number of withdrawals from England squads, but on this occasion, I think the injury is a valid reason to pull out of the side.

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