England World Cup squad: Roy Hodgson defends inclusion of Frank Lampard

The Chelsea player is the oldest member of his 23-man squad

Frank Lampard (Getty Images)

Roy Hodgson has defended the inclusion of Frank Lampard in his 23-man squad.

The Chelsea player, who will turn 36 during the tournament, is the oldest member of the England squad heading to Brazil.

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Hodgson defends selection of Lampard

For the most part, Hodgson has opted for a youthful squad, notably picking Luke Shaw over the experience of Ashley Cole.

However, he stuck with Lampard who has 103 caps for the Three Lions, explaining he still has much to offer.

"He is a very important part of our set-up still," said Hodgson.

"You can't compare players in terms of age but in terms of position and what they bring to the team. Frank has been the captain of the team during my two years and vice captain to Steven Gerrard."

Amid a young squad, it appears Hodgson values the experience Lampard can bring: "He still plays a very important role in his club side and his leadership qualities and ability as a player means he fully justifies his position."

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ENGLAND SQUAD..

Goalkeepers

J Hart (Manchester City), B Foster (West Brom), F Forster (Celtic)

Defenders

G Johnson (Liverpool), P Jagielka (Everton), G Cahill (Chelsea), C Smalling (Manchester United), P Jones (Manchester United), L Baines (Everton), L Shaw (Southampton)

Midfielders

S Gerrard (Liverpool, capt), F Lampard (Chelsea), J Henderson (Liverpool), J
Milner (Manchester City), J Wilshere (Arsenal), R Barkley (Everton), A Lallana
(Southampton), R Sterling (Liverpool), A Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal)

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Strikers

W Rooney (Manchester United), D Sturridge (Liverpool), D Welbeck (Manchester United), R Lambert (Southampton).

Standby-players

Michael Carrick (Manchester United), Andy Carroll (West Ham United), Tom Cleverley (Manchester United), Jermain Defoe (Toronto FC), Jon Flanagan (Liverpool), John Ruddy (Norwich City), John Stones (Everton)