Former England manager Graham Taylor has said that players not wanting to play for their country is nothing new.

Harry Redknapp claimed this week that players would regularly ask him to get them out of international duty during his stint as manager of Tottenham Hotspur.

Taylor believes that players are put under pressure by their agents and clubs to avoid playing international matches.

"When I was England manager, our last game was against San Marino and we had already failed to qualify for the World Cup. The players who came with me, I will always respect them," Taylor told BBC Radio 5 live.

"Agents play a part, saying 'you don't want to be coming home as part of a team who haven't qualified for the World Cup'.

"There are certain games and certain players who don't want to be involved in games like that. As much as we blame the players, they are put under pressure, sometimes by their club managers."

Taylor was England manager between 1990 and 1993.