FA chairman David Bernstein has said that there is a "desperate need" for more homegrown talent coming through the youth systems at English clubs.

The 70-year-old, who steps down from his position next month, said that work is underway to improve the percentage of English players playing in the Premier League.

"On the wider of issue of club and country, the number of English players in the Premier League and the Football League is a really important matter," Sky Sports News quotes Bernstein as saying.

"We have this number of around 30% and in Germany it is more than 50% (the actual figure is nearly 60%) and that 20% is a lot of players. We desperately need to increase the pool of real quality players that the manager Roy Hodgson has to choose from. That I think is the big issue.

"All the work we are doing such as in youth development is aimed at doing that over the next few years and it's great to see some very good players coming through now such as Jack Wilshere. There are some coming through but we need many more."

St George's Park National Football Centre - a similar establishment to France's Clairefontaine - was opened in October last year.