ANDROS TOWNSEND HAS hit out at Paul Merson after the Tottenham winger’s stunning equaliser secured a draw for England against Italy.

Former Arsenal forward Merson was highly critical of Townsend in the build-up to the latest international break and questioned why the ex-QPR man had been selected by Roy Hodgson.

In his column for Sky Sports, he wrote: “If Andros Townsend can get in [the England squad] then it opens it up for anybody. We are not picking players who are playing well for their clubs – he got taken off after 30 minutes the other week against [Manchester] United.

“It frustrates me, I am not having a go at Townsend because he has done well for England, but if you’re not playing well for your club then, in my day, you had no chance of playing for your country, absolutely zilch.”

But after his 20-yard strike helped stretch the Three Lions’ unbeaten run to eight matches in Turin, Townsend hit out at Merson for his comments regarding his inclusion.

“Not bad for a player that should be ‘nowhere near the squad’ ay @PaulMerse?” he wrote on his Twitter following the encounter at the Juventus Stadium.

The goal was Townsend’s third in an England shirt as he came off the bench and equalised Graziano Pelle’s first-half header.

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