There is plenty of debate as to the merits of both Everton’s Leighton Baines and Aston Villa’s Stephen Warnock in regards to making the England World Cup squad. For me, Baines is the one I would choose. There isn’t too much between the two left-backs as both have enjoyed good seasons at club level but the Toffees defender just has the edge.

Warnock is perhaps a bit more physical than Baines is, he has decent pace as well as a decent left-foot. However, he struggles when directly up against good right-wingers as proved by Antonio Valencia in Aston Villa’s Carling Cup final defeat at Wembley last weekend. When he is not directly up against a winger, he is a very good player and a plus point for him is that few countries play with wingers these days.

Everton star Baines is a better footballer than Warnock in my opinion. In fact, he reminds me of my old international colleague Denis Irwin in the way he plays the game. While Warnock may sometimes struggle against classy wingers, Baines if a bit better in one on one situations, perhaps due to his low centre of gravity and ability to turn quickly.

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It would seem that Manchester City’s Wayne Bridge was destined for the squad if he had not decided against playing for England, but for me, he has had the worst season at club level out of the three full-backs. He has made a few defensive errors and is so one-footed it’s ridiculous. To be honest, he has been the weakest of the three left-backs this season.

It will be interesting to see whether Capello opts for Aston Villa’s Warnock or Everton’s Baines but you never really know how players will perform until they play international football. Certain players make the step up with ease while some outstanding club footballers find it just doesn’t suit them for some reason or another. You only have to look at the likes of John Barnes and Chris Waddle who were amazing players for their clubs but struggled at international level.

I have seen plenty of players who I would have thought would take to international football like a duck to water but haven’t. So it really is a case of giving Baines and Warnock a chance to impress and seeing just how they do. Personally, I found international football easier than club football as only 20% of the games at that level are against top sides. In comparison there are tough games every week in club football while at international level you do face a lot of easy teams or at least you did in my day.

It will be interesting to see how the Everton and Aston Villa left-backs do tonight against Egypt but if I had to pick one on club form alone, I would go for Leighton Baines. Either way, this is a fantastic opportunity for both players to stake a place in the England squad for the World Cup finals in South Africa.