England U21 boss Stuart Pearce insists he took care of Newcastle United defender Steven Taylor, who was forced off at halftime of their 1-1 draw in Portugal on Tuesday night.
Taylor went into the game with a back complaint and Pearce revealed: "At half-time, I had Steven Taylor telling me he was fit to play on. My medical staff tell me he isn't.
"When you are in the technical area and you have the pressures of being 1-0 down to Portugal, it's easy to say 'give me another 15 minutes'. I'm not prepared to do that, so I have to tell him to come off."