Wigan Athletic assistant boss Eric Black has backed calls for an England chance for Titus Bramble.

"I couldn't agree more - I really thought Titus was the best player on the pitch," Black told the Wigan Observer. "To come here and marshall the defence like he did was outstanding.

"You're not going to come up against that kind of quality every week.

"Why shouldn't he play for England? If you're looking at centre backs over a period of time, which Fabio obviously does, Titus has become a very steady centre back.

"He was heavily criticised when he was at Newcastle, but I can't speak highly enough of him since we've been here. He doesn't make mistakes, he is aggressive, he is strong in the air, he is quick, he is a decent user of the ball - so why not?

"He trains exceptionally well every day, his injuries are very few and far between, and he is a good boy to have around the camp. He is a great character and deserves everything he gets. Obviously he is not playing on his own but I think he deserves an awful lot of credit for his form.

"People are always very quick to criticise him, so hopefully now they'll be just as quick to praise him. He works hard, he listens, he wants to be a better player, and he is hopefully now believing that he is a really good player. I don't see many faults in him at the moment, and he performed exceptionally well again on Saturday. Let's hope he can continue that for the rest of the season."