CHERRIES star Lewis Cook's World Cup dream is still alive after he was put on standby for next month's finals in Russia.

Cook missed out on selection for manager Gareth Southgate's final 23-man squad but was one of five players named as back up.

Southgate revealed the England travelling party earlier today and they will meet up at St George's Park on Monday ahead of friendlies against Nigeria and Costa Rica.

Cook would be in line to be drafted in should any midfielders withdraw before the start of the tournament.

The 21-year-old captained England to Under-20 World Cup glory last summer and has seen his stock rise during a stellar season in the Premier League with Cherries.

A £7million buy from Leeds two years ago, Cook had been in contention to be selected after winning his first senior cap during a friendly against Italy in March.

He was included in a provisional 35-man squad which was submitted to FIFA at the weekend, prompting Eddie Howe to leave him out of the Cherries team at Burnley on Sunday.

Cook, who has represented his country at every youth level, was also an unused substitute in friendlies against Holland and Brazil.

In an interview with the FA, Southgate said: "History tells us that one of those standby players may end up in the squad as it’s very unusual for us to get through the end of the season and our two preparation games without any issues.

"All of the guys on standby have been really professional in their approach to this. They recognise there’s still an opportunity and we’ve had a lot of conversations over a period of time with them about their situation."

Southgate added: “I believe this is a squad which we can be excited about.

"It is a young group, but with some really important senior players so I feel the balance of the squad is good, both in terms of its experience, its character and also the positional balance.

“We have a lot of energy and athleticism in the team, but players that are equally comfortable in possession of the ball and I think people can see the style of play we’ve been looking to develop.

“The selection process has been over months really, it’s not just been the last few weeks. We feel the team are improving and we want to continue that momentum."

Meanwhile, Cherries winger Ryan Fraser has withdrawn from the Scotland squad for their friendlies with Peru and Mexico.

The 24-year-old has become the latest player to pull out with the Tartan Army facing Peru in Lima on May 29 and Mexico in Mexico City on June 2.

News of Fraser's omission was tweeted yesterday by the Scottish Football Association but no reason was given.

Fraser played the final month of the Premier League season carrying a hamstring injury and had been hoping to be fit for the Latin America tour.

ENGLAND SQUAD: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jack Butland, Gary Cahill, Dele Alli, Fabian Delph, Eric Dier, Jordan Henderson, Phil Jones, Harry Kane, Jesse Lingard, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Harry Maguire, Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Marcus Rashford, Danny Rose, Raheem Sterling, John Stones, Kieran Trippier, Jamie Vardy, Kyle Walker, Danny Welbeck, Ashley Young.

STANDBY: Tom Heaton, James Tarkowski, Lewis Cook, Jake Livermore, Adam Lallana.