World Football On The Net

Fabio Capello has dealt a blow to the World Cup hopes of Chelsea’s Joe Cole after he left the midfielder out of his latest England squad and claimed the player "has problems".

Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti has used Cole sparingly in recent weeks, and the 28-year-old spent the first half of 2009 on the treatment table after a serious knee injury.

Capello suggested that Cole’s current form was the main reason for his exclusion from the squad.

“[Joe] Cole did not play against Inter [in the Champions League] and it's not a good moment for him,” he explained to the News of the World.

"Chelsea prefer Daniel Sturridge at the moment. Cole has problems and he's not the player I remember."

The Italian, who included Theo Walcott in his squad, also revealed that he felt the Arsenal player was lacking in confidence but needed game time to improve.

“I saw the last game Theo [Walcott] played, he was on for 72 minutes and did very well, but he is not in a fantastic moment,” he added.

"He needs to regain confidence because he has lost a lot of balls. He is getting better and better, but he needs to play."

England face Egypt on Wednesday night at Wembley in an international friendly.