Tuesday 29 March 2016 11:38, UK
Roy Hodgson has challenged England forward Daniel Sturridge to prove his fitness ahead of this summer's European Championships.
Sturridge will make his first England appearance for over 18 months in the friendly match against the Netherlands at Wembley on Tuesday night, with Hodgson confirming at his pre-match press conference that he intends to start the Liverpool striker.
It will be the final match before Hodgson names his 23-man squad for the finals in France and the England manager hopes Sturridge and Arsenal forward Danny Welbeck can prove their fitness before the season is out
"We're pleased to have another quality player like Daniel available and knocking on the door, trying to make it clear that he should be the first name on the team sheet," Hodgson said.
"All I can do is to give him the opportunity when he comes with the England team.
"I hope he continues to get those opportunities as well with his club side and that he'll take those opportunities and will continue to get more games behind him.
"If we look back over the last two years, he hasn't been able to get to get that many games behind him because of injury.
"It has been a damn sight more frustrating for him than for me because I have others who can play.
"When he's not available someone else plays, but it must have been enormously frustrating for him.
"But, I've got to say, during these seven days we've been together now, he doesn't seem to carry any frustration with him. He just seems to be back to the player he was.
"But I would like people like him and Danny Welbeck to make certain that in the four or five weeks that remain in the season to get as big a build-up as they possibly can of fitness, conditioning and match play, as well as training, so that they can convince me they are once again at the very, very height of their powers."
The squad has "changed enormously" since Sturridge's involvement in the 2014 World Cup, with the emergence of forwards such as Harry Kane and Jamie Vardy.
But Sturridge has shown flashes of quality after getting his stop-start season back on track, while Welbeck has certainly looked promising since returning to action last month, scoring four goals in nine matches for Arsenal.
Hodgson, who names his final squad for France on May 12, added: "I don't see any reason at the moment to doubt the pair of them or their ability and capacity to challenge and to show us they're the best people for the job.
"But the next few weeks are important for those two because I'd like to see them getting a bit more match play and fitness under their belts."
