England boss Hodgson stands by 'old guard' of Gerrard, Lampard and Terry
England boss will continue to rely on experience of Gerrard, Lampard and Terry to steer team through World Cup qualifiers, despite their age
Roy Hodgson has launched a passionate defence of England's old guard as he prepares to use the ageing stars to form the spine of his team for the 2014 World Cup qualifiers.
England start on the road to Brazil on Friday with their opening qualifier in Moldova followed by a home game against Ukraine the following week.
And despite England's tame exit from Euro 2012, Hodgson (pictured) has resisted the temptation to make wholesale changes to a squad that still relies on the same players who have been in place for the last eight years.
Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard will captain England in Moldova with John Terry, still awaiting the results of an FA charge of racially abusing QPR's Anton Ferdinand, anchoring Hodgson's defence alongside his Chelsea teammate Ashley Cole.
Frank Lampard may find it more difficult to earn a starting place, but the Chelsea midfielder's performance in a friendly win over Italy recently suggested he still has an international future under Hodgson. When asked why he had stuck so stoically by his older players, Hodgson said: "Because I think they are good enough, that's why.
"Terry and Lampard are bad examples for that kind of argument actually because Andre Villas-Boas, when he took over the Chelsea team, decided that was the way he would go, or maybe was advised to go by the owner. And yet they were eventually the players who came back and won the Champions League.
"I want to win football matches and I won't be prepared to throw players of Terry, Lampard and Gerrard's quality away from the national team until I am sure there are much better players who can take their place.