Roy Hodgson: ‘Jack knows we’d be happy to have him’

England manager Roy Hodgson believes Jack Grealish, the Aston Villa player who has six Under 21 caps for the Republic of Ireland, will make a final decision by this autumn over whether he wants to play for England or Ireland at senior level.

Grealish, who opted to make himself unavailable to Martin O’Neill for the forthcoming friendly international against England in Dublin on June 7, is said to be agonising over his answer; but Hodgson yesterday made it very clear he wants the 19-year-old on board as he announced his own squad for next month’s fixture.