Sport Forward: Cahill called up as England cover

International friendly: England v Slovenia
Venue: Wembley Stadium, London Date: Saturday, 5 September KO: 1730 BST
Coverage: Live on BBC Radio 5 live and the BBC Sport website. Live text commentary on the BBC Sport website. Live on ITV1

Cahill could make his England debut if John Terry is ruled out

Bolton's Gary Cahill has been drafted into the England squad for Saturday's friendly against Slovenia at Wembley.

The 23-year-old centre-back is in as cover for Wes Brown and John Terry, who picked up knocks in training.

Cahill was in Fabio Capello's squad for the qualifier against Kazakhstan in June but did not feature in the match.

With Rio Ferdinand (thigh) already out, Capello will be eager for Terry in particular to be fit for the World Cup qualifier with Croatia on 9 September.

In a statement, the Football Association stated that both players were likely to be fit for a match in which victory would secure England's place at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

However, Capello may chose to rest them against Slovenia given the importance of their meeting with Slaven Bilic's Croatia four days later.