Southampton sensation Shaw and Cardiff’s Caulker chosen by England

The nod to youth continues with Liverpool winger Raheem Sterling (6/4) promoted from the Under-21 setup again after his recent eye-catching displays.

Caulker’s temporary Cardiff teammate Wilfried Zaha (16/1) has not been so fortunate, however. Like fellow forward Saido Berahino (6/1), he remains a Young Lion for now.

Arsenal attacker Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (4/5) is also back in after fully recovering from a knee injury sustained on the opening day of the Premier League season. Tottenham counterpart Andros Townsend (4/11) keeps his place despite struggling with niggling problems over the winter.

Including Toronto-bound Jermain Defoe (9/4), who is not fit to play for Tottenham in Europa League action, and much-maligned United midfielder Tom Cleverley (13/8) are eyebrow-raising selections from Hodgson.

Defoe is simply not going to be playing at a high enough level between now and the World Cup to be a serious candidate to go. Many commentators would have preferred Everton’s Gareth Barry (5/1), on loan from Manchester City, to be brought back instead of keeping Cleverley in the squad.

West Ham target man Andy Carroll (4/1), who provided three assists in four matches before picking up a ludicrous red card against Swansea City, is a notable absentee.

He may be competing with Lambert for one spot when it comes to the final 23-man World Cup squad, but Hodgson has missed a trick here by ignoring a fresh player.

Sunderland winger Adam Johnson (another 4/1 shot) has also missed out on a recall, despite his rejuvenation under Gus Poyet and a pending appearance in the Capital One Cup final.

Ross Barkley (8/15), Jordan Henderson (5/4) and Jack Wilshere (1/6) provide energetic midfield legs alongside usual suspects Michael Carrick, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and James Milner (all odds-on).

Right back and attack have a familiar look too, with the inclusions of Glen Johnson (1/5), Kyle Walker (2/7), Danny Welbeck (1/6), Daniel Sturridge (1/8) and Wayne Rooney (1/50).

Hodgson stressed his selections are not definitive yet but, given the cautious reputation he has, punters should not expect the squad to differ violently from how it looks now.