Wayne Rooney has been named as the new England captain by manager Roy Hodgson. In a press conference at Wembley Stadium this afternoon, Hodgson confirmed the widely-expected appointment as he also named his England squad for the upcoming games against Norway and Switzerland.

Rooney takes over the armband from departing skipper Steven Gerrard, who retired from international duty last month. Joe Hart and Gary Cahill were seen as the other main contenders to claim the armband, but England coach Hodgson has sprung no surprises by naming 28-year-old Rooney as his new captain.

The news also follows Rooney's appointment as Manchester United captain last month.

Rooney said: "To be named as England captain is a dream come true for me personally and of course my family. "It is something that I will take massive pride in doing. To be appointed captain is beyond my wildest dreams. "I would obviously like to thank Roy and the coaching staff for having the belief and confidence in me to do the job.

"Hodgson said: "Wayne is an obvious choice for his honesty, commitment  to the cause, his experience, the fact he has already captained England in the past. Now of course he's got that responsibility at Manchester United as well. All those factors weighed into my thought process and I'm pleased to be able to say I've been able to offer it to him.

I had a long conversation with him and he's prepared to accept the pressures the England captaincy brings."

Meanwhile, four uncapped players were named in the England squad to face Norway in a friendly at Wembley on Wednesday 3rd September and in the opening Euro 2016 qualifier in Switzerland on Monday 8th September.

Arsenal's Callum Chambers, Newcastle's Jack Colback, Tottenham's Danny Rose and Aston Villa's Fabian Delph have all been given the opportunity to showcase their talents on the international stage after their impressive club form.

Elsewhere, Everton defender John Stones was included after just missing out on Hodgson's World Cup squad, whilst Andros Townsend and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain are both set to feature after overcoming recent injuries.