England U21 boss Pearce ponders axing Hamburg signing Mancienne

England U21 boss Stuart Pearce is prepared to drop skipper Michael Mancienne.

The former Chelsea defender, who has signed for Hamburg, struggled against Spain on Sunday.

Pearce has refused to confirm whether the 23-year-old - or any of his players - would be retained for England's second Group B game against Ukraine in Herning on Wednesday.

"If Michael's not on the pitch, then he can't captain the team - common sense," said Pearce, who pointed out he not had a full-time skipper since Steven Taylor's under-21 career ended.

"That's what it was like two years ago moving into the new campaign.

"This campaign, it's been a little bit different, bit stop-start, with regards to Micah (Richards) has captained team, Michael has, Fabrice Muamba, Ryan Bertrand.

"For me, there is no relevance.

"My loyalty doesn't stem to making sure the last person who captained the team will be in the next team. That's absolutely no consideration to me at all."

 
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