Roy Hodgson has confirmed that if Phil Jones fails to recover from a shoulder injury, he will be replaced in the England squad for this summer's World Cup by John Stones.
Manchester United defender Jones suffered the problem during his side's 3-1 win over Hull City last week, but that didn't deter Hodgson from including the centre-back in his 23-man selection earlier today.
However, despite the fact that Jones is expected to recover in time for the tournament that gets underway in Brazil next month, Hodgson has revealed that Everton's 19-year-old Stones would be his alternative option.
"[Jones] had his shoulder injury a week ago. Everyone tells me - and my research tells me because I had a very similar injury twice when I was at Fulham with two players, everything points to a three-week injury. We can't guarantee that and as a result, I will be taking John Stones and Jon Flanagan with us on the trip [to USA]," he told reporters.
"John Stones will be Phil Jones's replacement if by the June 2 we are not confident that Phil Jones will be fit, but everything tells me that he will be."
Both Stones and Flanagan are part of England's seven-man stand-by list.
Liam Apicella
