Peter Taylor intends to pick an England squad of 25 players next Thursday for the friendly against Italy. But the caretaker coach and Leicester manager insisted he will not be selecting Leeds pair Jonathan Woodgate and Lee Bowyer.
The players are not being considered for England selection until their court case is heard. Taylor, it has been reported, pressed the Football Association to make the players available, but he was keen to put the record straight yesterday.
"I was disappointed with the way the story came out," he said. "As a temporary manager all I did was ask the FA for guidance on the matter. They said they would prefer the players not to be picked and that's the end of the matter as far as I'm concerned."
Taylor still expects to be in full control of the friendly against Italy, with the assistance of Manchester United's Steve McClaren, despite the unveiling of Sven-Goran Eriksson as new England coach.
David May is targeting the Manchester derby for his long-awaited comeback. The Manchester United defender, who last started a game for the club 12 months ago, is building up his match fitness following a ruptured Achilles tendon injury.
May hopes to be in contention for the clash with Manchester City at Maine Road on November 18th. "It's very frustrating obviously, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel now," May said. "The last two years have been a bit of a nightmare for me, but touch wood I'm over them.
"It would be a great game to come back for, the derby. I think everybody knows I'm a City fan. I'm pleased for them and I hope they stay up because it gives us six points."
DERBY have sealed the signing of Nigerian international Taribo West on a three-month loan deal from AC Milan.
The 26-year-old defender - noted for his striking green hair - has yet to be given a work permit, but Derby hope he will be available for Monday's Premiership clash against West Ham. French defender Lilian Martin is definitely available after his move from Marseille. Meanwhile, Swindon have reached agreement with Colin Todd and Derby over compensation for his services. Todd quit as Swindon boss to become Jim Smith's assistant at Pride Park.
Lazio's Argentinian striker Claudio Lopez has been ruled out of football for four months following medical tests on a knee injury sustained in Wednesday's 2-1 Serie A victory over Brescia.
Lopez underwent a scan on his left knee yesterday which revealed problems to the knee ligaments and is similar to an injury sustained by Christian Vieri when he was at the club two years ago, although in Lopez's case it is worse.
Real Madrid players came out in support of out-of-touch striker Raul yesterday after he was criticised in the Spanish media for his performance in a 2-0 home defeat by Real Mallorca. The Spanish international has scored just one goal in Real's last six league games.
"We all know that Raul is a great footballer," said midfielder Ivan Helguera. "He could easily go out in the next game and score a hat-trick." Robert Carlos was equally confident. "He may not be at his absolute best at the moment, but he's going to explode and score goals."
