Micah's international future under Capello

The announcement of the England squad last night would have made uncomfortable reading for Micah Richards. Although Capello has made it clear he has doubts over Micah's positional play, the sheer lack of options and competition for the right-back slot must have left Micah with a chance of selection.

It is well known that Micah has struggled to deal with the hype since his early burst onto the international scene. He went from being touted as a future England captain to losing all his confidence under Hughes, but after a resurgence of form under Mancini it is perhaps not inconceivable for Micah to have ambitions for a spot on the plane to South Africa.

Granted, he is not the finished article yet and undoubtedly he has a future with the national side once the mental attributes of his game catch up with his raw physical ability, but looking at the squad Capello has picked for the Egypt friendly, should Micah be aggrieved at being overlooked again?

With all the focus on the "troubled leftback spot", there have been few complaints that Wes Brown is the only player capable of filling the right-back position in the squad. Admittedly, James Milner has been used there, but you would hope that is not the reason he is in the squad on recent performances. Wes Brown then.

One of Capello's constant mantras is that he will only pick a player who is playing for his club side - usually rolled out against Michael Owen and also used against Joe Cole, to some extent, this time round. Wes Brown is probably third choice United right-back at the moment. The baby-faced Rafael and the aged Neville getting the nod ahead of him. If this is endorsement enough to be considered the nation's second best right-back behind Glen Johnson, then perhaps we aren't as nailed on for as good a World Cup as a lot of people think. Whether he is good enough or not, without playing he looks miles off the pace when thrown in on the national scene. In the friendly game against Brazil he was an embarrassment.

Now this isn't meant solely as an attack on Wes Brown, but Micah must surely be looking at England's options for right-back and be thinking - "why not me?" Regardless of whether he is international quality or not, he may just be the best option England have.