Newcastle midfielder Dan Gosling is in the England Under-21 squad to face Azerbaijan and Israel next month

By Dan King - Newcastle United Club Reporter

Former Newcastle defender Stuart Pearce has selected Dan Gosling for the England Under-21 squad to face Azerbaijan and Israel next month.

Gosling has not figured for his country since suffering a knee injury while playing for Everton in March 2010, which restricted him to just one appearance for The Magpies last season.

But the midfielder is now fully fit and, following an impressive pre-season, came on against Sunderland on Saturday - almost scoring moments after his introduction.

He turned 21 in February and could now add to his two England Under-21 caps in the games on September 1 and September 5.

The Three Lions face Azerbaijan at Watford's Vicarage Road in the opening fixture of their 2013 European Under-21 Championship qualifying campaign, before taking on Israel at Barnsley's Oakwell in a friendly.

The 27-man squad named for the two games is:

Goalkeepers: Ben Amos (Manchester United), Jack Butland (Birmingham City), Declan Rudd (Norwich City).

Defenders: Nathan Baker (Aston Villa), Joe Bennett (Middlesbrough), Matthew Briggs (Fulham), Steven Caulker (Swansea City, loan from Tottenham), Craig Dawson (West Bromwich Albion), John Flanagan (Liverpool), Phil Jones (Manchester United), Martin Kelly (Liverpool), Kyle Walker (Tottenham Hotspur), Andre Wisdom (Liverpool).

Midfielders: Ross Barkley (Everton), Dan Gosling (Newcastle United), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Emmanuel Frimpong (Arsenal), Henri Lansbury (Arsenal), Josh McEachran (Chelsea), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal), Jack Rodwell (Everton), Jonjo Shelvey (Liverpool).

Forwards: Nathan Delfouneso (Aston Villa), Marvin Sordell (Watford), Martyn Waghorn (Leicester City), Danny Welbeck (Manchester United), Connor Wickham (Sunderland).