As he gets ready to make his comeback from injury for the
England under-21 team tonight, Anton Ferdinand admits he is also
desperate to return to action in a claret and blue shirt.
After recovering from a hamstring strain, the 21-year-old defender is set to start for the young lions in their European Championship qualifying play-off first leg against Germany at Coventry City's Ricoh Arena, and reveals that he actually came close to making a Premiership return for the Hammers last Sunday
"The injury is fine now and I was very close to playing against Reading," he says. "If the game had been just two days later, I would have put my name forward to start.
"I've done all my strength work and have been running without any problems at all this week, so I am ready to play again.
"Because of that, I have been able to join up with the England under-21 squad, and hopefully I can play the two matches against Germany, which will help me boost my match fitness before our game at Portsmouth next week.
"It has been so frustrating watching from the sidelines recently, especially with the way results have gone," he adds. "I don't enjoy watching from the side even if we win, so it has been an absolute nightmare for me in the last couple of weeks.
"Obviously things are not great at the moment, but I've got every faith in the lads to turn it around. We could just do with a little break in front of goal, perhaps a lucky goal or something, and I'm sure the confidence will rise straight away.
"I'm just desperate to get back and help the team in any way I can now. The games with England will hopefully ensure that I come back feeling fit and strong, and the whole team will be doing everything we can to get a win under our belts against Portsmouth."
After recovering from a hamstring strain, the 21-year-old defender is set to start for the young lions in their European Championship qualifying play-off first leg against Germany at Coventry City's Ricoh Arena, and reveals that he actually came close to making a Premiership return for the Hammers last Sunday
"The injury is fine now and I was very close to playing against Reading," he says. "If the game had been just two days later, I would have put my name forward to start.
"I've done all my strength work and have been running without any problems at all this week, so I am ready to play again.
"Because of that, I have been able to join up with the England under-21 squad, and hopefully I can play the two matches against Germany, which will help me boost my match fitness before our game at Portsmouth next week.
"It has been so frustrating watching from the sidelines recently, especially with the way results have gone," he adds. "I don't enjoy watching from the side even if we win, so it has been an absolute nightmare for me in the last couple of weeks.
"Obviously things are not great at the moment, but I've got every faith in the lads to turn it around. We could just do with a little break in front of goal, perhaps a lucky goal or something, and I'm sure the confidence will rise straight away.
"I'm just desperate to get back and help the team in any way I can now. The games with England will hopefully ensure that I come back feeling fit and strong, and the whole team will be doing everything we can to get a win under our belts against Portsmouth."