mawspurs
19-06-2010, 11:00 PM
Source: Telegraph
Michael Dawson insists he is ''ready'' to make his England debut in Wednesday's vital World Cup clash with Slovenia if called up by Fabio Capello.
The Tottenham central defender will by vying with Matthew Upson for a spot in place of the suspended Jamie Carragher who collected his second yellow card of the tournament against Algeria.
Dawson failed to make the final 23 for South Africa after being one of seven players axed from his initial squad by Capello nearly three weeks ago.
But the knee injury to skipper Rio Ferdinand earned the 26-year-old a late call-up.
And Dawson has moved closer to the starting line-up after Ledley King's ongoing groin problem and now Carragher's one-game ban.
England need to win to secure a place in the last 16 but Dawson is relishing the challenge – if selected.
Dawson, Tottenham's player of the year, said: ''Since I've been here, I've tried to do the best I can, train in the same way as I do at Tottenham.
''We will just wait and see who is playing. Who knows who will be chosen?
''All I can do is concentrate on doing well in training and we will wait and see what happens.
''But I will be ready if the manager chooses me – and I am sure Matty (Upson) will be saying the same.
''It would be a dream to play in a World Cup.''
Dawson is aware of the significance of Wednesday's game after England's woeful performance against the Algerians in Cape Town last night.
He said: ''Obviously we are disappointed we didn't win the game but it is still in our own hands to go through to the next round.
''We've got a big game on Wednesday, we've got to make sure we win that and then we will be all right.
''It is a must win, it is as simple as that. A win is the only thing that will help us.''
Midfielder Gareth Barry, who returned from his ankle problem against Algeria, said: ''We know we are good enough to beat Slovenia, that's the main thing.
''But at the same time it's going to be a tough task and we know we've got to improve our game.
''It's in our own hands to make it into the next round. That's all we can ask but we have to do better.''
Michael Dawson insists he is ''ready'' to make his England debut in Wednesday's vital World Cup clash with Slovenia if called up by Fabio Capello.
The Tottenham central defender will by vying with Matthew Upson for a spot in place of the suspended Jamie Carragher who collected his second yellow card of the tournament against Algeria.
Dawson failed to make the final 23 for South Africa after being one of seven players axed from his initial squad by Capello nearly three weeks ago.
But the knee injury to skipper Rio Ferdinand earned the 26-year-old a late call-up.
And Dawson has moved closer to the starting line-up after Ledley King's ongoing groin problem and now Carragher's one-game ban.
England need to win to secure a place in the last 16 but Dawson is relishing the challenge – if selected.
Dawson, Tottenham's player of the year, said: ''Since I've been here, I've tried to do the best I can, train in the same way as I do at Tottenham.
''We will just wait and see who is playing. Who knows who will be chosen?
''All I can do is concentrate on doing well in training and we will wait and see what happens.
''But I will be ready if the manager chooses me – and I am sure Matty (Upson) will be saying the same.
''It would be a dream to play in a World Cup.''
Dawson is aware of the significance of Wednesday's game after England's woeful performance against the Algerians in Cape Town last night.
He said: ''Obviously we are disappointed we didn't win the game but it is still in our own hands to go through to the next round.
''We've got a big game on Wednesday, we've got to make sure we win that and then we will be all right.
''It is a must win, it is as simple as that. A win is the only thing that will help us.''
Midfielder Gareth Barry, who returned from his ankle problem against Algeria, said: ''We know we are good enough to beat Slovenia, that's the main thing.
''But at the same time it's going to be a tough task and we know we've got to improve our game.
''It's in our own hands to make it into the next round. That's all we can ask but we have to do better.''