INTERVIEW
Thursday, February 17, 3:26pm London Time
Keegan ready to risk gamble on Wise
By Martin Lipton
Kevin Keegan is likely to give Dennis Wise the benefit of the doubt today by naming the Chelsea midfielder in the England squad for next week's Wembley friendly with Argentina.
Aston Villa's Gareth Barry and Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard are also in line for a chance to make their international bows as Keegan begins his count-down for the Euro 2000 finals.
But the West Ham duo of Joe Cole and Frank Lampard, and Leeds' Lee Bowyer and Jonathon Woodgate, will have to wait after being confirmed in Howard Wilkinson's Under 21 squad to play the South Americans at Craven Cottage on Tuesday.
The decision to select Wise is entirely at Keegan's discretion, despite the events of the last few days.
His enduring capacity for courting controversy surfaced again on Saturday when he was involved in the altercation with Wimbledon's Kenny Cunningham that precipitated the Stamford Bridge tunnel brawl.
The incident landed Wise back in the Football Association dock, but after Bowyer was selected by technical director Wilkinson yesterday, despite sparking the mass confrontation during the Spurs game, it is clear that Keegan's hands will not be tied by the blazer brigade.
Unless he has a last-minute change of heart, the signs last night were that Wise would be included and could even be asked to play in the problem left-sided role that Keegan has wrestled with throughout his tenure as national coach.
Keegan set the precedent in March when he named Graeme Le Saux and Robbie Fowler for his first match against Poland, even though both players had been charged with misconduct for their highly-public clash at Stamford Bridge.
Last month, Keegan ruled Wimbledon's Ben Thatcher out of international contention after an elbowing incident with Sunder-land's Nicky Summerbee, but it is evident that the weekend incidents, though causing great concern at Lancaster Gate, are viewed in a different light.
The unstated policy is that play-ers are innocent until proven guilty, and with the evidence against Wise consisting of a report by referee Peter Jones and hearsay, Keegan is likely to stick with the Chelsea skipper, who earned the last of his 12 caps against Hungary on the eve of Euro 96.
While Wise ' s disciplinary problems refuse to go away, his importance for Chelsea this season has been as great as ever and he is more than capable of playing on the left flank.
Keegan has already tried Steve McManaman, Ray Parlour, Tim Sherwood, Steve Guppy and the injured Jamie Redknapp in that role, but Wise would be as comfortable as any of those.
He is likely to face competition from two players who have been ruled out of action since Keegan began his reign as coach.
Darren Anderton's injury problems - which have forced him out of the three Keegan squads he has previously been named in - appear to have been put behind him for the moment and the Spurs man has played on the left before, most notably under Terry Venables in Euro 96.
Jason Wilcox, who came off the bench in Wilkinson's one game in charge against France 12 months ago, could reap the rewards of his impressive displays since returning to the Premiership at Leeds.
Wilcox, who linked up so well with skipper Alan Shearer at Blackburn, appears the favourite to come in, though there have been appreciative murmurs within the England squad for the displays of Darren Eadie since his ¢G3million move to Leicester in December.
Barry's elevation to the senior ranks - he celebrates his 19th birthday on the day of the game - will be one of the few experiments Keegan makes with the timescale so short.
Although there are still five months to go before the championships begin, the Argentina match represents the only friendly Keegan has before he names his provisional squad in May and hones his final 22 in matches against Brazil, Ukraine and Malta.
The Villa defender will be the chief beneficiary of Tony Adams' enforced absence after Arsene Wenger confirmed the Highbury skipper will not be allowed to join up.
Barry, more customarily used on the left side of a back three by Villa, could be an option at left back as well, with Phil Neville likely to be the other alternative in the continued absence of Le Saux.
Gerrard's call is equally merited after his excellent and consistent displays for Liverpool, though the groin injury he sustained in Sunday's win at Highbury means his fitness will be a matter of concern for the Anfield club, already without the crocked trio of Redknapp, Robbie Fowler and Michael Owen.
Elsewhere, Keegan is likely to recall Newcastle's Kieron Dyer and McManaman after injury, while Teddy Sheringham's recent displays for Manchester United have suggested he is still a viable option up front, though Kevin Phillips seems the likeliest choice as Shearer's strike partner.
Emile Heskey is a player Keegan has already hinted could force his way into the Euro 2000 equation, but Chris Sutton, Andy Cole and Paul Merson could be competing for one or two places.
Possible Squad: Seaman (Arsenal), Martyn (Leeds), Wright (Ipswich), G Neville (Man Utd), P Neville (Man Utd), Keown (Arsenal), Campbell (Tottenham), Southgate (A Villa), Barry (A Villa), Ferdinand (West Ham), Parlour (Arsenal), Beckham (Man Utd), Dyer (Newcastle), Ince (Middlesbrough), Scholes (Man Utd), McManaman (Real Madrid), Anderton (Tottenham), Gerrard (Liverpool), Wise (Chelsea), Wilcox (Leeds), Shearer (Newcastle), Phillips (Sunderland), Heskey (Leicester), Sheringham (Man Utd), Cole (Man Utd), Sutton (Chelsea).
England Under 21s (v Argentina at Craven Cottage, Tuesday): Weaver (Man City), Taylor (Arsenal), Robinson (Leeds), Griffin (Newcastle), Mills (Leeds), Curtis (Man Utd), Ball (Everton), Carragher (Liverpool), Young (Tottenham), Chadwick (Man Utd), Woodgate (Leeds), Harley (Chelsea), Bowyer (Leeds), Lampard (West Ham), Johnson (Derby), Hendrie (A Villa), Bridges (Leeds), Campbell (Middlesbrough), Cole (West Ham), Cort (Wimbledon), Jeffers (Everton), Naylor (Wolves), Smith (Leeds).