Pump new blood into team for finale-Hoddle tells England

By Karolos Grohmann

BELO HORIZONTE Brazil (Reuters) - Coach Roy Hodgson should pump fresh blood into his already eliminated England team for their final World Cup game against Costa Rica on Tuesday to prepare for future competitions, former England coach Glenn Hoddle said on Monday.

"This match should be viewed by Roy as a "freebie", a chance to blood (Luke) Shaw who hasn’t had a kick yet, and (Ross) Barkley and (Adam) Lallana," Hoddle said on Monday.

England lost their Group D matches against Italy and Uruguay and are heading home following their worst World Cup showing in more than 55 years.

"Roy Hodgson needs to risk another defeat to give some of his best youngsters a starting berth and to reward some of the players in his squad who don’t want to go home feeling they just have been along for the ride," he said.

"Blood more youngsters to give them valuable experience going into the Euro qualifiers," Hoddle, who coached England at the 1998 World Cup, said in a column for British bookmaker William Hill (www.williamhill.com).

Hodgson has now the uncomfortable dilemma of either fielding youngsters and risk leaving Brazil in complete disgrace and without a single point or stick to a more experienced team that has proven it cannot deliver on the world stage.

England exited the finals at the group stage for the first time since 1958, their fate sealed when group leaders Costa Rica, who have won both their group games, beat the Italians on Friday to ensure Hodgson's side could not make the top two spots.

The squad will fly home immediately after they play Costa Rica in Belo Horizonte, site of another England World Cup debacle -- their 1-0 defeat to amateurs United States in 1950.

"I appreciate Roy will be under pressure from the FA and from the fans to get at least one result to take home, to lessen the present embarrassment of the worst record for such a long time, but the FA have got to look at the bigger picture," Hoddle said.

(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann, Editing by Nigel Hunt)