Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is confident about the future of the England national team.

Wenger had words of encouragement for England boss Roy Hodgson.

The Three Lions supremo has voiced fears he has too few players to choose from in the Premier League.

But Wenger reckons half the England team will soon be Gunners if Kieran Gibbs and Carl Jenkinson can join Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshere and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain as squad regulars.

The Gunners chief added: "Maybe Roy is right - a few more would be good. But the trend is changing. I have good young English players who play.

"And it is not my fault if Aaron Ramsey is Welsh!

"I can understand Roy, of course, because when you go to games and there are no English players you can complain if you are the England manager..

"But you cannot want to be the best league in the world and close the borders so you have to find a good mixture. I think the good mixture is to produce the players from your own academies and buy top, top, top-class players.

"The trend follows the economic strength. When I was at Monaco, all of the players went to Italy.

"It was the league you wanted to be in - Paul Gascoigne and the best English players went to Italy.

"Now it is England. The price to pay is that you have fewer English players."