Robbo: England's Schmeichel

Steve McLaren has declared that Paul Robinson is England's Peter Schmeichel and that he "trusts him with his job". McLaren heaped praise on the goalkeeper and considering Schmeichel is considered the best goalkeeper in Premiership history, Robinson will feel proud of his comments.

"I'm not at all bothered by what I've seen with Robbo. He starts. He is our Peter Schmeichel," McClaren enthused.

"Sometimes players go through bad spells and have bad games. But I think you've got to have belief and faith and trust in your players.

"With this squad, you know the history of them. If they've performed well for England in the past then that's taken into consideration."

Robinson has kept 12 clean sheets in his last 14 outings for England, his reputation has been stuck on a downward spiral since a disastrous match in Croatia twelve months ago.

"Everybody is human. Everybody has frailties and makes mistakes.

"I feel the same confidence in Robbo that we had in Peter Schmeichel when I was at Manchester United. I would not play him otherwise."