Joe Hart is on the plane for Brazil but will Roy Hodgson give Celtic goalie Fraser Forster the nod?

England boss has tough decisions to make over back-up goalie.

Roy Hodgson knows that he’s going to land himself with a lot of grief when he makes his final cut for Brazil.

The England manager accepts that a barrage of criticism is heading his way, whether he leaves out big-name stars or promising youngsters from the squad of 23 he names on June 2.

But Hodgson is determined to please only one person himself!

“My job is to select the best 23 the best-balanced 23 and I’ve got to do it on the merit of players,” he says.

“If you’re on that plane, it’s because I believe you’ve really got a role to play, and I can justify it to myself.

“I’ll never justify my selections to everybody because there are a lot more than 23 players in the reckoning.

“All those who get left out will have supporters. I’ll accept other people’s criticisms, but that doesn’t bother me as much as justifying it to myself.

“I want to know that I’ve made the right decision.

“There will be plenty of players who believe they’re good enough to go. But a lot can still happen.

“If you’d put together your 23 three or four months ago, you’d have left out names that are very serious contenders at the moment.”

Hodgson has just 90 minutes of international football before he hands his final squad list to FIFA on June 2.

He must pick his provisional 30 on May 13, six days before he next meets his players.

It means that following last Wednesday’s friendly victory against Denmark, he now only has club form on which to base decisions.

He admits that he hopes Manchester United who could provide six members of his final squad, including the talismanic Wayne Rooney end the season on a high after a miserable few months.

“I know the United players are all disappointed with the way things have gone and they’re very, very determined to put it right,” says Hodgson.

“I’m hoping to see them playing well and making certain that, when May 13 comes around, I’m looking at them in good form, not receiving harsh criticism as they are just now.

“Wayne bears a big responsibility in that respect, but he’s the sort who takes that responsibility on.”

Hodgson handed another start to his established No. 1 goalkeeper, Joe Hart, against the Danes, resisting the temptation to give game time to his three back-up keepers, Ben Foster, Fraser Forster and John Ruddy.

“I felt it was important for Joe to play after the disappointment of missing the Capital One Cup Final,” he says.

“We’ve got the three games Peru, Ecuador and Honduras and we thought we’d do the experimentation with the second goalkeeper in those matches.”

Hart is obviously already on the plane and publicly Hodgson is saying that it’s two from three after that.

But Foster, whom Hodgson worked closely with at West Brom, is almost certain to be the No. 2, leaving Forster and Ruddy to fight for the third place.

“It’s been very good to have Ben back in the squad,” says the manager. “I’ve missed him for five or six months.

“He’s been superb in training, so one thing’s for sure Joe knows he’s got a fight on his hands.

“Then we have the other two, the young Fraser and the experienced Ruddy. So we’re not short of quality goalkeepers.

“It’s a shame I’ve got to disappoint one of them.”