Wright keen to lock horns with Rashford

Yet to cement his spot at international level, Socceroos defender Bailey Wright wants to make the initiation for England's latest whiz kid as tough as possible.

Marcus Rashford, the 18-year-old striker who scored eight goals after making a whirlwind rise to the Manchester United set-up, is set to make his international debut off the bench against Australia in Sunderland on Friday night (Saturday 0445AEST).

England coach Roy Hodgson surprised many by picking Rashford in his 26-man pre-European Championship squad, despite only debuting in late February.

Wright, a hard-nosed defender for English Championship surprise packets Preston North End, said going up against Rashford was a challenge he was relishing.

"He's scored a lot of goals for United since he got his chance and that's football - you get your chance, you take it with both hands and look where it can take him," Wright said.

"I bet you 12 months ago he didn't see himself being part of the Euro squad and he's obviously a good player and he's still really young and very direct.

"It'll be good to test yourself against someone like him, a young player hungry to do well."

Wright fell into the same category two years ago when making his Australian debut, and in just 10 games for his country has become one of the Socceroos' most reliable defenders.

"From when I first came in, it was getting to know the boys and getting to know what the expectations were and what the standards were," Wright said.

"You quickly learn that, for me now the next thing was to get playing and now I've done that you want to keep that."

He joined Preston North End six years ago and has established himself as a key cog in defence, playing 41 games in all competitions last season.

Preston only won promotion to the English Championship 12 months ago beating Swindon Town 4-0 in the League One playoff.

They exceeded all expectations in briefly challenging for a playoff spot before settling for 11th in the league, one spot ahead of Socceroo teammate Massimo Luongo's Queens Park Rangers.