Robert Green is set to be handed his first England start in Kazakhstan next month.

The West Ham goalkeeper headed a three-man team selected by coach Fabio Capello for the trip to Almaty on June 6, part of a World Cup double-header which also includes an encounter with Andorra at Wembley.

With David James and Ben Foster ruled out by shoulder and thumb problems respectively, Green's presence in Capello's last squad, plus his second-half appearance against Spain in February suggests he is ahead of both Scott Carson and Paul Robinson.

Yet it is still a leap of faith for Capello to place his trust in Green, whose only other cap came against Colombia in 2005, his hopes of making the squad for the following year's World Cup shattered by a knee injury suffered in a B international against Reading at the Madejski Stadium.

While Green should hardly get a touch, let alone have a serious save to make against Andorra, he may be tested in the heat of Almaty, even if England are heavy favourites to extend their 100% record in Group Six and move another step closer to a place in next summer's Finals in South Africa.

Green's lack of experience may go some way to explaining the surprise recall of Gary Neville.

After spending more than two years battling injury since making his last appearance against Spain at Old Trafford, Neville might have considered his Three Lions days to be over.

Even this term he has hardly been a regular at Manchester United and although he did play at Hull on Sunday he is only expected to be on the bench in Rome on Wednesday when Sir Alex Ferguson's men take on Barcelona in the European Cup final.

But, just like his long-time friend David Beckham, Neville has been deemed worthy of a recall.

And, if he is picked for either match in next month's World Cup double-header against Kazakhstan and Andorra, he will equal Kenny Sansom's record for a full-back of 86 caps.

Indeed, as Capello would not have picked Neville if he did not believe he could make a meaningful contribution beyond two matches England should win to take maximum points from their first seven matches in Group Six, the 34-year-old could well end up getting somewhere close to the century mark before he does eventually call a halt to his international career.

All Capello's big-name outfield players have been picked, with Emile Heskey and Carlton Cole both recovered from the injuries suffered in the friendly win over Slovakia that subsequently kept them out of last month's victory against the Ukraine at Wembley.

Jermain Defoe returns after a three-match absence, while Theo Walcott is fit for international duty after dislocating his shoulder in training prior to the friendly win over Germany in Berlin last November.

As ever for an England manager, there are still some worries to get over before Capello's squad meets in a week's time.

Including Neville, four members of his squad will be on duty for United in Rome, while a further four - including skipper John Terry - will feature in Saturday's FA Cup final.