TONY ADAMS could retain the England captaincy despite, the return of Alan Shearer for the World Cup qualifier against Italy at Wembley on Wednesday week.

Shearer was Glenn Hoddle's original choice to lead the side but for the moment the England coach is keeping an open mind on the subject.

Adams led England with distinction during last summer's European Championship but missed the start of the season following a further operation on the damaged knee which had kept him out of the Arsenal team since the beginning of the year.

Having spent five months on the wagon, he began drinking after England had lost to Germany on penalties in the Euro 96 semi finals, and last autumn he admitted he was an alcoholic.

Nevertheless Hoddle had no hesitation in handing the captain's armband back to Adams when Shearer, recovering from a groin operation, was forced out of the World Cup game in Georgia in November.

Now Hoddle is going to have to give serious thought about who he wants to lead the side into a match which will have a considerable bearing on whether or not England go straight into the 1998 World Cup as group winners or have to take their chances as runners up, which could involve a playoff.

"I said from the outset that Alan would be captain for three matches and I'd assess it after that," Hoddle explained when he announced a squad containing no surprises yesterday. "Obviously I didn't know that he would be injured for the Georgia trip.

"I think I said that Alan would probably return as captain but I'll talk to the two lads when we meet up next week. There won't be any 100 per cent decision made at this moment. I'll speak to the boys first."

The reality is that whoever wears the armband against Italy Adams will be leading England from the back, Shearer from the front.

The recall of Graeme Le Saux and Robert Lee to the England squad was almost as predictable as Shearer's return. Le Saux last played for England in a friendly against Portugal 13 months ago and it was shortly after this game that the Blackburn defender suffered an ankle injury so serious that his playing career was put in jeopardy.

Now, with Andy Hinchcliffe out for the season, Le Saux appears set to make his first England appearance under Hoddle, filling one of the wing back roles which could be crucial to the outcome. "There are not many players who can fill this position naturally but Graeme is one," said the England coach.

Lee will take the injured David Platt's place among the spare hands and Tim Flowers has been recalled as a fourth goalkeeper. There is no place for Liverpool's Jamie Redknapp or Manchester United's Gary Pallister.

The presence of Stuart Pearce, whom Hoddle persuaded to come out of international retirement when he realised Le Saux would not be available for the start of the World Cup qualifiers, is now a curiosity since it is hard to recall any previous England squad including a player manager. Sol Campbell may again keep Pearce out of the team although the Tottenham defender's erratic distribution could become a liability against opponents of Italy's quality.

As to what England's team might be, Hoddle was giving little away yesterday although he did speak of Steve McManaman's qualities in glowing terms. "His best position is floating, as he does for Liverpool," the England coach observed. "In the European Championship he was played wide but he is more effective when he comes inside and can go past people on the left or the right."

McManaman, dropped in Tblisi, now becomes the most viable alternative to Paul Gascoigne, who is recovering from an ankle injury and in any case struggled to keep up with the play against both Poland and Georgia. If Hoddle decides to play the Newcastle partnership of Shearer and Les Ferdinand up front, with Gascoigne or McManaman just behind them, he may need both Paul Ince and David Batty to stiffen England's midfield.

Yesterday the England coach brushed aside the idea of close marking Zola.