RIO Ferdinand is set to be the biggest casualty of Roy Hodgson's first selection as England manager.

Ferdinand will be excluded from the 23-man European Championships squad that is announced this afternoon, but John Terry is expected to be awarded a place on the plane to Ukraine.

The decision will effectively call time on Ferdinand's international career and ignite a major controversy little more than a fortnight after Hodgson was appointed as England's new manager.

Hodgson is understood to have telephoned Ferdinand yesterday to inform him he would not be involved in his summer plans.

When the 33-year-old was asked whether he had been omitted from the squad in the wake of last night's friendly between Manchester United and an Irish Premier League Select XI in Belfast, he answered “yes”.

It remains to be seen which centre-halves have been selected ahead of him, but the expectation is that Terry will be offered an international lifeline later today.

The Chelsea centre-half is due to stand trial for allegedly racially abusing QPR defender Anton Ferdinand in July.

He has struggled to recapture his best form for the majority of the campaign and will miss this weekend's Champions League final after he was sent off for a reckless kick at Barcelona's Alexis Sanchez in the semi-final.

It had been widely predicted that Hodgson would leave him out of England's Euro 2012 squad, and his presence will be controversial if it is confirmed later today.

Hodgson was at Chelsea's Cobham training ground yesterday, where he met a number of players including Terry.

While the Chelsea skipper looks to have secured an international reprieve, there will be disappointment for a number of other players.

Tottenham full-back Kyle Walker is set to miss the European Championships through injury after damaging his ankle in Tottenham's win over Fulham at the weekend.

The youngster, who would have been England's first-choice right-back, was named PFA Young Player of the Year earlier this month, but he left White Hart Lane with a protective cast around his ankle on Sunday and has lost his battle for fitness.

His absence could have opened a door for Micah Richards, but having been dropped at an early stage of Fabio Capello's reign, the Manchester City full-back is set to miss out again under Hodgson.

It also looks as though there will be no place for Peter Crouch, who was another player cast into the wilderness under Capello.

However, Hodgson is set to name Liverpool striker Andy Carroll in his squad, even though the former Newcastle United forward has struggled to justify his £35m price tag for the majority of the season.