England have already secured their passage to next summer's European Championships and with two games remaining Roy Hodgson has been presented with the opportunity to give chances to fringe players to stake their place for a place in his Euro 2016 squad. However, Hodgson will also have one eye on finishing the qualification process with a 100 per cent record - a feat no England manager has previously managed - and he will be demanding nothing less than six points from fixtures against European minnows Estonia and Lithuania.
WhoScored look at XI Hodgson should field against Estonia on Friday based on the league form of the players selected in his 25-man squad, which throws up some surprise inclusions.
It would be unlikely to see anyone other than Joe Hart start in goal for England next summer, but Jack Butland's performances for Stoke in the league this season shouldn't go without praise. The Potters have endured a troubled start to the new campaign and things could have looked much worse had it not been for a series of inspired performances from Butland. In fact no goalkeeper has made more saves than Butland in the Premier League this season (37) and his WhoScored rating of 7.24 is far superior to Hart's (6.91).
The withdrawal of John Stones (7.22) means his Everton teammate Phil Jagielka (7.21) is promoted to partner Chris Smalling (7.32) at the heart of England's defence, with Stones' replacement, Kyle Walker (7.03), also managing to squeeze in on the right of the defence at the expense of Nathaniel Clyne, who has become Hodgson's No.1 right-back in recent matches.
The absence of Jordan Henderson and Jack Wilshere (both injured) has provided a good chance for the likes of James Milner, Michael Carrick and Jonjo Shelvey (an injury doubt) to flourish in central midfield, but it's Dele Alli that would celebrate his first senior call up with a starting berth here. The 19-year-old was only playing in League One last season, but has made the impressive step up to the Premier League without any signs of struggle thus far. In fact, of the current players in Hodgson's squad, no player is averaging more tackles and interceptions combined per game than Alli (5.6).
Elswhere, there would also be no place for England captain Wayne Rooney. The Manchester United striker has struggled for any sort of form in the Premier League this season, but isn't likely to feature on Friday through injury. However, based on form, Jamie Vardy is proving to be an indespensible player for Leicester and would also rank above Harry Kane (6.96) and Theo Walcott (6.80) in the pecking order for those vying for a central role up front. The Leicester front man is currently ranked inside the top 10 players across Europe's top five league this season having scored seven goals and registered one assist to the Foxes excellent start.
The 28-year-old has been used as a wideman during his short England career thus far, but all eight of his league appearances have come as the frontman this season and it would seem odd not to play to his current strengths.
Finally, with Danny Welbeck injured, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (6.49) completly out of form and Theo Walcott now considered a striker for Arsenal a spot has become available for Andros Towsend, who is a favourite under Hodgson. The 24-year-old hasn't had a look in at Spurs over the last two years and having only played for over an hour in the league this season, his selection in the squad has understandably raised eyebrows, particularly given the form of the likes of Wilfried Zaha (7.04).
Which XI should face Estonia on Friday? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below
