Terry picked 'for footballing reasons'

Roy Hodgson focused on footballing matters as he explained the selection of John Terry and the omission of Rio Ferdinand in his England squad for this summer's European Championship.

Terry was selected despite the July court case awaiting him regarding allegations that he racially abused QPR defender Anton Ferdinand, which Terry denies. Ferdinand's elder brother Rio being left out of the squad will help to avoid any tension that could have stemmed from the pair sharing a dressing room in Poland and Ukraine.

Hodgson said: "If we take the court case first of all, that's obviously very unfortunate for him but we must emphasise he is an innocent man until such time as he is proven guilty. My decision with John Terry was based purely on footballing matters, I was given a free hand as to the squad I picked."

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