World Cup: What Might England's 2022 Line-up Look Like?

Centre Back - Chris Smalling

Age in 2022: 32 Smalling has already picked up plenty of experience of football at the highest level at Man United since joining from Fulham as a 20 year old. Despite not being an automatic first teamer, he has played over 50 games for the club in 3 years and has already appeared 9 times this season. With Rio Ferdinand getting past his best, Smalling is clearly being pushed as his most obvious successor in both the Man United defence and for England, where the current pair of Cahill and Jagielka's international quality remains up for debate. Tall, physically imposing and good in the air, Smalling has many of the qualities of a classic English centre back, but with a level of comfort having the ball at his feet and distributing it from the back. Playing his first England game under Fabio Capello in the Euro 2012 qualifiers, Smalling has seen increasing amounts of international action, including in the last game against Poland. As with Clyne and Shaw developing a better understanding of each other's game while playing together at Southampton, Smalling has the potential to develop a reliable centre back partnership for Man United that will form the backbone of England's defence for years to come. Currently: Manchester United, 7 England caps

Centre Back - Phil Jones

Age in 2022: 30

Currently: Manchester United, 8 England caps

Strong and powerful, Jones has the quality to make a solidly hard to beat centre back on his own and even more effective as part of a partnership with Smalling.

Alex Ferguson obviously rated the former Blackburn defender highly enough to shell out an enormous £16.5 million for him back in 2011. Since then he, like Smalling, has been a regular for United without ever quite establishing himself as a first choice player. Similarly, for England he has already racked up 8 appearances without yet carving out his own niche.

Like Smalling, who was used as a right back against Poland, Jones offers a flexible, versatile option. It is this versatility, though, that may be as much a curse as a blessing. Repeatedly being played at right back or as a holding midfielder may not show Jones to the best of his abilities, much like the period where Owen Hargreaves was used as a lacklustre right back by England before a few games as a midfield anchor showed how good he actually could be.

Both Smalling and Jones need to be given regular games in the centre of defence to develop into the players England need them to be. Given Nemanja Vidic's towering dominance of the Man United back line, it will probably be a case of each hoping to take Ferdinand's place.

Other possible contenders: Steven Caulker (age 30 in 2022), Nathaniel Chalobah (27 in 2022), Andre Wisdom (29 in 2022)

Recent Cardiff signing Steven Caulker, a product of the Tottentham youth system, is fast and good in the air and has a good line in goalscoring. Caulker scored in his only England appearance so far, a friendly in Sweden, and played in all of Great Britain's Olympic games. If Smalling and Jones don't get their chance at Man United, 21 year old Caulker's position playing week in, week out at Cardiff could push him ahead in the England pecking order.

In terms of younger talents, Chelsea are excited by 18 year old Nathaniel Chalobah who has already played 11 times for England's Under-21 team. Having impressed on loan at Watford last season, Chalobah is fit, athletic and fast and can play in defence or as a central midfielder.