ENGLAND MANAGER Fabio Capello is planning to include Arsenal prodigy Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain as a wild card selection for his Euro 2012 squad in June.
Capello has enjoyed watching the youngster’s hard-running and direct style and believes he is capable of making the step up to the senior squad. Even before Sunday’s man-of-the-match display against champions Manchester United, the Italian had received glowing feedback from Stuart Pearce about his Oxlade-Chamberlain’s performances for the England Under-21 side. He has made seven appearances and scored a hat-trick against Iceland in October.
Capello will continue to monitor Oxlade-Chamberlain’s progress throughout the season and he is likely to give him a chance to shine in a friendly against Holland at the end of February.
England also play against Norway and Belgium after the end of Premier League season and those matches could give the winger a chance to cement his place.
Chamberlain signed for Arsenal from Southampton last August in a deal worth an initial £12m. He has played in three league games, making his debut as a substitute against Manchester United when they beat the Gunners 8-2 in August.
He scored his first goal for the club in their League Cup win over Shrewsbury and became the youngest Englishman to score in the Champions League on September 28 against Olympiacos.
He took that record from Arsenal team-mate Theo Walcott, a player that he has been compared with throughout his career. Although Chamberlain has rejected such comparisons, the fact that Walcott himself was a shock call-up for Sven Goran Eriksson’s 2006 World Cup squad will no doubt bring them to the headlines again.