Manchester City football development executive Patrick Vieira believes that Micah Richards can still play a crucial role in England's future despite his Euro 2012 snub.

It is understood that the City defender turned down being placed on the standby list for the tournament after England manager Roy Hodgson called other players to inform them of their exclusion but didn't ring the 23-year-old.

Former teammate Vieira insists that, while his exclusion is a mystery, he can be a big player for the Three Lions later on in his career.

"We don't have all the answers in our hands to make a comment but not calling Rio Ferdinand or Micah Richards is a surprise, but at the end of the day it is the manager's choice and we don't know what is going on behind closed doors," Vieira told talkSPORT.

"I don't know any players who don't want to play for their country. I haven't spoken to Micah since the last game of the season and I know that he was quite disappointed not to be part of the squad and I can understand that because that was his target. He was working really hard for it.

"He's still young and I believe that in the future he can one of the key players for England."

Richards has 13 England caps.