There was a joyless inevitability about the news of Jonjo Shelvey's call-up to the England squad.
People called for the side to be refreshed, infused with younger blood after Euro 2012 and that remains the right thing to do. Players should be picked at the start of a qualification campaign who will be in a position to excel two summers later.
There is a difference, however, between picking new players who need to use those two years to learn their way around international football and picking new players who still need to learn their own game.
Shelvey is clearly going to pick up his fair share of caps for England in the years to come but he is some way off being ready for senior international football. He has yet to define and secure his role in the Liverpool team, yet to mature personally and professionally – witness his startlingly immature behaviour in the wake of his red card against Manchester United.