Roy Hodgson has mounted a passionate defence of Raheem Sterling after another day of twists in the Liverpool forward's contract saga.
Sterling was due to hold talks with Liverpool on Friday and, according to Sky sources, was preparing to tell the club he would not be signing an extension to his current deal.
That meeting has now been scrapped by Liverpool, and it is understood their stance remains the same: Sterling has two years to run on his contract and is not for sale.
In the meantime Sterling and his agent Aidy Ward have been criticised by Liverpool greats Jamie Carragher and Phil Thompson on Sky Sports, while the player has been jeered at the club's awards ceremony.
None of that deterred Hodgson from including Sterling in his latest England squad, and the manager says the 20-year-old deserves sympathy rather than abuse.
"I trust him implicitly," Hodgson said. "I think he's a very important person and a very important player for England going forward. I'll be very disappointed if he doesn't continue to kick on and get even better as he gets older.
"And I really do sympathise with these players who, if you like, have got to live their lives under scrutiny - sometimes of their making, sometimes of other people's making - and they've got to deal with it.
"I worry for all these young players, to be honest. They become stars very quickly. Their period of potential stardom doesn't last for very long these days. Sometimes, a few games in the Premier League and you are a star.
"We should never forget we're dealing with very young people. I believe from what I know of Raheem that he's strong enough to compartmentalise his life - from this side to what happens on the field of play, which is what interests me."
Hodgson earlier said he would not be "poking my nose in" to the row and called Sterling's chanracter "absolutely spot-on".
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