Jack Wilshere and Harry Kane have been recalled by England interim manager Gareth Southgate for the forthcoming matches against Scotland and Spain.
Wilshere has been missing from the England set-up since Euro 2016 as both former boss Sam Allardyce and then Southgate chose to leave him out.
But a loan move from Arsenal to Bournemouth has given the 24-year-old some much-needed playing time and he has convinced Southgate he is worthy of a recall. A knee injury to Tottenham’s Dele Alli has created the midfield vacancy in the squad that Wilshere has filled.
“Jack Wilshere is a player that we feel has a lot of class and is now starting to get more 90-minutes under his belt. It’s good to bring him back into the squad,” Southgate told the FA’s website. While Alli has been forced out, his Tottenham teammate Kane rejoins the group after missing Southgate’s previous matches in charge against Malta and Slovenia.
Kane has missed seven weeks with an ankle injury but the striker started the north London derby against Arsenal on Sunday and scored from the penalty spot to secure a 1-1 draw.
“We had some good discussions with a lot of the clubs over the past few weeks, and Tottenham have been very helpful in terms of Harry’s availability. I’m grateful to (Tottenham manager) Mauricio (Pochettino) for that,” Southgate said.
Manchester United defenders Chris Smalling and Luke Shaw are not involved in the 25-man squad after being declared unfit for their club’s 3-1 win over Swansea on Sunday. With Smalling missing, Burnley defender Michael Keane has been selected ahead of highly-rated Ben Gibson of Middlesbrough after the former received his first England call-up as injury cover for last month’s games.
England host rivals Scotland in a World Cup qualifier at Wembley on Friday and then face Spain in a glamour friendly at Wembley the following Tuesday to round off their 2016 fixtures.
“Over the last few weeks we’ve been looking at as many games as possible and keeping track of all of the players,” Southgate added.
“There were some players that weren’t available to us last time with injury who are in good form that make the frame — the likes of Nathaniel Clyne, Adam Lallana and Raheem Sterling.
“It’s good to be able to welcome them back.”
England’s 25-man squad to face Scotland in a World Cup qualifier on November 11 and Spain in a friendly on November 15
Goalkeepers: Fraser Forster (Southampton), Joe Hart (Torino/ITA), Tom Heaton (Burnley)
Defenders: Ryan Bertrand (Southampton), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Nathaniel Clyne (Liverpool), Phil Jagielka (Everton), Michael Keane (Burnley), Danny Rose (Tottenham), John Stones (Man City), Kyle Walker (Tottenham)
Midfielders: Eric Dier (Tottenham), Danny Drinkwater (Leicester), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Jack Wilshere (Bournemouth), Adam Lallana (Liverpool), Jesse Lingard (Man Utd), Raheem Sterling (Man City), Andros Townsend (Crystal Palace), Theo Walcott (Arsenal)
Forwards: Harry Kane (Tottenham), Marcus Rashford (Man Utd),
Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool),
Jamie Vardy (Leicester), Wayne Rooney (Man Utd)