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England v Portugal | Villa Park | Saturday, 7 September kick-off 1600 BST | Live on BBC Radio Five Live and BBC Sport Online

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Michael Owen will skipper England against Portugal on Saturday after David Beckham withdrew from the squad with a calf injury.

Beckham limped off during Manchester United's 1-0 victory against Middlesbrough on Tuesday.

And England coach Sven Goran Eriksson has called on Owen to deputise again, after the Liverpool striker first stepped in to the senior role against Paraguay in April.

Your say: Is Fergie right to snub friendlies?

He has got a little pull in his left calf muscle which obviously is a concern for us

Sir Alex Ferguson

Eriksson will have have noted the appearance of Paul Scholes in United's midweek side, despite his being ruled out of his England squad after sustaining an ankle injury in the Champions League qualifier against Zalaegerszeg.

Scholes fitness riddle

David Dunn has already been called up as a replacement for the injured Newcastle midfielder Kieron Dyer.

The Blackburn midfielder has impressed for David Platt's Under-21 side, notably when he scored a superb goal against Holland in November 2001.

Dunn called up for Dyer

Dunn's club manager Graeme Souness believes the 22-year-old may be raw, but he is more than ready for his chance in the full squad.

"He has got tremendous natural ability, he is an extremely strong boy and he knows where he wants to be."

Dyer pulled out of the friendly after suffering from shin splints against Liverpool on Monday.

Full story: Squad announced

"We are withdrawing Kieron from the squad and informing the FA as he has had a recurrence of shin splints," said the Newcastle manager Bobby Robson.

"When he runs he is all right. But when he starts to walk he has intense pain and suffers spasms."

Dyer had been named in the first international squad of the new season by coach Sven-Goran Eriksson earlier on Monday.

Academy feature: Shin splints explained

The 23-year-old was hampered by a string of injuries last season, including shin splints, but he recovered from a knee injury to feature in the World Cup.

The 22-year-old first deputised for Beckham against Paraguay in April and continued in the role until the Manchester United midfielder returned to the England line-up for the World Cup clash against Sweden in June.

WC = World Cup
WCQ = World Cup
EC = European Championship
ECQ = European Championship
F = Friendly International
BJT = Brazilian Jubilee Tournament

HEAD TO HEAD MATCH TOTALS

All Engld Portgl Drawn

Total meetings 18 9 3 6

World Cup 2 1 1 0

World Cup Quals 2 1 0 1

Euro Ch'ship 1 0 1 0

Euro Ch Quals 2 0 0 2

Brazilian Jubilee 1 0 0 1

Friendlies 10 7 1 2

FIXTURE HISTORY

DATE COMP MATCH RESULT

25 May 1947 F Portugal 0-10 England

14 May 1950 F Portugal 3-5 England

19 Mar 1951 F England 5-2 Portugal

22 May 1955 F Portugal 3-1 England

07 May 1958 F England 2-1 Portugal

21 May 1961 WC Q Portugal 1-1 England

25 Oct 1961 WC Q England 2-0 Portugal

17 May 1964 F Portugal 3-4 England

04 Jun 1964 BJT Portugal 1-1 England

26 Jun 1966 WC SF England 2-1 Portugal

10 Dec 1969 F England 1-0 Portugal

03 Apr 1974 F Portugal 0-0 England

20 Nov 1974 EC Q England 0-0 Portugal

19 Nov 1975 EC Q Portugal 1-1 England

03 Jun 1986 WC Portugal 1-0 England

12 Dec 1995 F England 1-1 Portugal

22 Apr 1998 F England 3-0 Portugal

12 Jun 2000 EC Portugal 3-2 England

MOST RECENT MEETING

PORTUGAL 3-2 ENGLAND

European Ch'ship Finals - 12 June, 2000 - Eindhoven

Portugal scorers: Figo 22, Joao Pinto 38, Nuno Gomes 60

England scorers: Scholes 3, McManaman 18

Portugal team: Vitor Baia, Xavier, Dimas, Paulo Bento, Fernando Couto, Jorge Costa, Rui Costa (Beto 84), Nuno Gomes (Capucho 90), Joao Pinto (Conceicao 75), Vigigal.

England team: Seaman, Neville G, Neville P, Ince, Campbell, Adams (Keown 81), Beckham, Scholes, Shearer, Owen (Heskey 46), McManaman (Wise 57).

Referee: Mr Frisk - Att: 33,000


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