The Football Association's technical director Sir Trevor Brooking has insisted Arsene Wenger is wrong to try and keep Jack Wilshire out of the U21 European Championship.

The Arsenal midfielder is one of six players with senior international experience named in the 40-man provisional squad for the championship, and is certain to go to the finals in Denmark so long as he does not suffer an injury before then.

Wenger, the Gunners manager, has opposed his inclusion. He has argued that it would lead to burnout, and wants him to sit out the tournament so he can be fresher come the start of the next Premier League season.

That looks unlikely, after Brooking backed the view of coach Stuart Pearce that involvement in tournaments at youth levels is vital if the same players are to go on and achieve at senior level.

"We are not trying to drain our players. The issue mainly for us is tournament experience. Just look at some of the other countries. Spain is the best example," he said. 

“Some of their current big name players won 50, 60, 70 youth caps in the different age groups and have won trophies at those levels. The Germans were used as an example recently when we lost to them 4-0 in the 2009 final of the European U21s. 

“Seven of them got fast tracked into their senior squad and performed really well a year later at the World Cup. Of course, they have got to be ready for it but tournament football is so different. 

“We had a great qualifying campaign (for the World Cup) and then disappointed in South Africa. We think tournament football is very different. 

“You have a game every three or four days, find out who is a good traveller, who comes off the bench well, who is moody and who is doom and gloom about the place when they are not in the team. You have got to find out about people and you only do that through tournament football.”