'WE need to wait because so far he has played one Premier League game and some minutes at Wembley.

'But potentially he is a fantastic player.

'He needs to play more games with Manchester United.’ That’s what Fabio Capello said about former Blackburn Rovers centre back Phil Jones.

When the manager of England doesn’t notice a player of Jones’ talent for a full season and three months of the season before, it’s no wonder the national side is in a state.

It was Sunday, March 21, 2010, when Jones made his Premier League debut.

A real baptism of fire in a home game against Chelsea. The match ended in a 1-1 draw, but man of the match Jones was responsible for keeping goal machine Didier Drogba at bay.

That was just the beginning. With regular first team action he grew and grew and his performances continued to improve and he transferred to the champions for £17m.

Immediately after his transfer, he’s up there as one of the first few names on the England teamsheet. In all probability, team selection for Capello is easy.

“Give me a list of all the English players at the top four clubs. We’ll be fine.” It must go something like that.

What must England Under 20s Jason Lowe and Josh Morris be thinking?

As soon as they become old enough to hit the big time, they’ll need to get out of Ewood Park if they ever want to play in a World Cup.

It’s not the first time Rovers stars have been shunned by England. Had Paul Robinson been playing in London come the previous World Cup, you can all but guarantee he’d have had a place in the squad, if not the starting 11.

Other notable players include David Dunn, Stephen Warnock, David Bentley, Matt Jansen – who was dropped in place of defender Martin Keown – David Thompson and Chris Sutton.

How many other Premier League top scorers settle for a place in the B team?

When players like Chris Powell and Michael Ricketts have England caps to their names, you do have to wonder.

Read Jason Wilcox's column only in today's Lancashire Telegraph newspaper.