Duo put themselves in England frame

Fabio Capello will be a regular visitor to Portsmouth this season with Peter Crouch and Jermain Defoe hitting it off as a pairing.

The two frontmen are the archetypal little and large combination and their pre-season form for Pompey suggests that they could provide the answer up front for England in their upcoming World Cup qualifying campaign.

Scoring goals has been a real problem for England in recent times, with Michael Owen badly hit by injuries, Wayne Rooney frequently played as a lone striker and too much pressure on Steven Gerrard to deliver regularly from midfield. Capello's men are favourites to win qualifying Group 6 and those who have strong feelings about England chances can take advantage of a £25 free bet.

But Crouch - 14 goals in 28 international appearances - and Defoe - 5 goals in 28 appearances - could be offered the chance to strike up the combination they will have regularly at Pompey.

Not only are the Pompey pair likely to relish the prospect of playing together for the Three Lions, but the pressure release from some of England's big names may allow them to also flourish more than has been possible in recent times.

Harry Redknapp is certainly looking forward to seeing the pair in action, saying: "I'm sure Peter and Jermain will go on to be a great partnership for this club.

"They showed what they can do. I'm sure there's more to come from them."