Impressive Lambert is tasked with leading way forward for England

Rickie Lambert will start his first international against Moldova on Friday – and he may well have to lead the line when England manager Roy Hodgson takes his patched-up squad to Kiev next week.
England's Rickie Lambert (centre) celebrates after scoringEngland's Rickie Lambert (centre) celebrates after scoring
England's Rickie Lambert (centre) celebrates after scoring

Lambert wrote the latest chapter in his Roy of the Rovers story last month when he was called up to the England squad, just 13 years after he had to screw tops on to beetroot jars for a living.

Many thought Lambert would join the likes of David Nugent and Jay Bothroyd in the one-cap wonder club, but the former Blackpool and Rochdale striker headed Hodgson’s side to victory over Scotland and he was rewarded with another call-up for England’s latest double-header.

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Now, the Southampton striker will lead the England attack against Moldova because of an injury crisis – and it appears that there is a good chance he will start in the 70,000-capacity cauldron that is the Olympic Stadium in Kiev next Tuesday too.

Wayne Rooney is out because of a nasty cut to his head and Hodgson did not sound optimistic about his replacement Daniel Sturridge overcoming a thigh injury in time for the second qualifier.

In Lambert, though, Hodgson is confident he has a natural goalscorer who can fire his team to two crucial victories.

“I am more than happy to have a player of his calibre to start this game (against Moldova),” the England manager said.

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“I am sure we will have enough firepower in the squad for the next two games.

“Rickie has shown that he has Premier League qualities. He took his chance with us before extremely well.

“His attitude was right, he scored a good goal against Scotland and the players accepted him as a guy with bona fide qualities to play for England.

“It’s not always easy to come in and make an impact, but he did that.”

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Sturridge carried a thigh injury into Liverpool’s win over Manchester United last Sunday and he is definitely out of the Moldova game.

The 24-year-old will undergo treatment with Liverpool on Friday and return to the England base in Watford on Saturday, where he will be assessed.

Hodgson, who confirmed Steven Caulker will also miss the Moldova game with an ankle injury, did not seem overly-confident about Sturridge making the Ukraine game.

“We are hopeful, but no more than that,” the England manager said.

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“I can’t tell you what the chances are, but it’s far from evident that he will be able to play in (the Ukraine) game.”

Having seen Sturridge net five times in four games for Liverpool, captain Steven Gerrard hopes his team-mate recovers for the Ukraine game.

“It’s a shame for Daniel,” Gerrard said. “The stage was set for him to shine on the international stage as well and fingers crossed he will recover in time and be available for Tuesday.”

Hodgson will resist the temptation to rest players on Friday, even though Moldova will provide far weaker opposition than Ukraine.

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Kyle Walker, Gary Cahill, Phil Jagielka and either Ashley Cole or Leighton Baines are expected to start in front of goalkeeper Joe Hart while Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Jack Wilshere will definitely play in midfield.

Hodgson confirmed that Arsenal’s Theo Walcott and Manchester United forward Danny Welbeck will provide Lambert with assistance from the flanks.

England swept Moldova aside 5-0 in their opening Group H qualifier last September, but poor results against Montenegro, Ukraine and Poland have left the team in a precarious position with only four qualifying games remaining.

England trail leaders Montenegro by two points, although the Balkan nation have played one more game, while Ukraine are also a real threat as they are just one point behind Hodgson’s men having played the same number of matches.

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The England manager knows, therefore, that his team cannot afford to be complacent against anyone.

He said: “I don’t subscribe to the theory that this is an easy one and then there’s a difficult one, then you’ve got a fairly easy one and a fairly difficult one.

“I don’t quantify games in that way.

“After our initial victory over Moldova - where we took them by surprise and had a very good win - have become very hard to beat and we know they’re going to be hard to beat tomorrow night.

“I need my best players to do it.”