Walcott poised for England recall as Capello prepares for French test

Walcott has one England cap, earned against Hungary in May 2006 when he became the country's youngest ever international at 17 years and 75 days (Getty Images)

Theo Walcott is in line for a surprise return to the senior England fold when Fabio Capello tomorrow names his provisional 30-man squad to face France next week. The Arsenal striker was left out of the England Under-21s squad yesterday and Capello is understood to be minded to give the 19-year-old his first call-up since the 2006 World Cup finals.

Walcott, who only turned 19 on Sunday, is high on the new England manager's list for the friendly in Paris next Wednesday. Capello is set to be hit by a number of withdrawals after the big four play each other on Sunday. The scheduling of the two fixtures – Manchester United v Liverpool and Chelsea v Arsenal – has not been kind to the England manager, who then has only two days to prepare his team for the match against France.

There is also a major decision to be made on David Beckham, who was watched by Capello's assistant Fabio Baldini – officially known as the team's general manager – in Dallas on Sunday.

While the former England captain is a distinct possibility for Capello's second England squad – and potentially his 100th cap – the final details of whether he is in or out have not yet been decided.

As well as Walcott being left out of the Under-21s squad to face Poland at Molineux on Tuesday, Tottenham's Aaron Lennon and Tom Huddlestone and Newcastle's Steven Taylor have also been omitted. The Spurs pair are not thought to be in contention for a place in the senior squad, but could come into play if there are major withdrawals following Sunday's games. The 30-man squad will be reduced to 23 on Saturday night.

Last night Pearce dropped a broad hint that certain players from the Under-21s would be moving up to the senior squad.

"I'm not suggesting they've been left out totally, but I'm also not suggesting one or two faces might not turn up in Fabio's squad, that's down to him," Pearce said. "Before his squad's picked that's not for me to say." However, he did say there may be "one or two" surprises. "There might be one or two names that are in Fabio's squad that make you sit up and listen."

Walcott has one England cap, earned against Hungary in May 2006 when he became the country's youngest international at 17 years and 75 days. The youngest player at the 2006 World Cup, he was not used by Sven Goran Eriksson in Germany and the inclusion of the teenager came to be viewed as one of the Swede's biggest leaps of optimism.

The Aston Villa striker Gabriel Agbonlahor is also set to be picked, having been named in Capello's first squad to face Switzerland last month and then subsequently suffering a hamstring injury that forced him to withdraw. The favourite for the captaincy is John Terry, who also missed the Switzerland game through injury. Although Capello has announced that the position was up for grabs, the Chelsea captain is expected to be given the armband.

Yesterday, the Chelsea manager, Avram Grant, said that Terry deserved to keep the captaincy. In his absence, Capello gave it to Steven Gerrard for the 2-1 win over Switzerland.

Grant said that England needed Terry "more than he needs England". "They missed him against Croatia [in the Euro 2008 qualifying defeat in November]," Grant said. "Look at his leadership. You will not find a captain like him every day. England needs him more than he needs England. If he'd played against Croatia, England would be in the European Championship."

ENGLAND UNDER-21 SQUAD v Poland (25 March, Molineux): Goalkeepers: Hart (Manchester City), Heaton (Manchester United). Defenders: Dann, Fox (both Coventry City), Gardner (Aston Villa), Mancienne (QPR, on loan), Mattock (Leicester City), Onuoha (Manchester City), Shawcross (Stoke City). Midfielders: Cattermole, A Johnson (both Middlesbrough), M Johnson (Manchester City), Leadbitter (Sunderland), O'Hara (Tottenham Hotspur), Surman (Southampton). Forwards: Campbell (Hull City, on loan), Derbyshire (Blackburn Rovers), Jerome (Birmingham City), Miller (West Bromwich Albion), Moore (West Bromwich, on loan).