England midfielder James Maddison assures of his availability ahead of the World Cup opener against Iran amid knee problems

James Maddison is looking forward to the FIFA World Cup as he will be raring to make a mark for Gareth Southgate’s England in the quadrennial tournament in Qatar. However there’s a slight scare for the Leicester City midfielder as he was taken off the ground with knee problems as the Foxes defeated West Ham 2-0 with him also getting on the scoresheet.

The injury incident happened only two days after he was announced in the final English team selected by head coach Gareth Southgate. But now it remains to be seen if he manages to feature in the first game against Iran or not.

The English players trained for the first time in Qatar on Wednesday, the group also had Kyle Walker who has suffered a groin injury and will not be a part of England’s opening game against Iran on Monday. By the looks of it Maddison would be the next one to miss out but till now he is hopeful to be available right from the first game.

Maddison scored against West Ham before he went off the ground, so he is hopeful that he will be available at his best and with the goalscoring form he is in, the Leicester midfielder believes he can make a difference for the Three Lions at the big stage.

“I’ve got to be ready when called upon,” Maddison said in a press conference. “I feel like I’m in good form, in good goal-scoring form, we’ve got such a brilliant squad, you might only get that one moment to show everyone what you can do and be the man to help the team. I’ll be ready when that opportunity comes.”

He shared how he was having some issue before the West Ham game aswell but he wanted to help his club and not sit out just because of the World Cup. But after seeing the scan he is positive that he will be featuring in this world cup.

“We had a scan the day before we met up which was a positive scan. I had a little problem in the week building up to the West Ham game, post-Everton game. I wanted to play (vs West Ham). I didn’t want to not give it a go because of the World Cup. I wanted to help Leicester,” the midfielder opened up.

He shared how he needs to work with the physios to get back to full fitness and things will only improve. He is in great form with his goals and assists and can be a very valuable asset for Southgate.

“I managed to score early and carry on after that. It was a bit sore and getting worse as the game went on. I thought it was probably best for me to come off and get someone else on who wouldn’t have a problem with a full sprint. I have to do a little bit of work to get up to speed with the physios here but it should be no concern,” he concluded.

England are in Group B with top teams like the United States, Asian giants Iran and also rivals Wales. While most people will expect them to cruise their way through to the knockouts given the talent at their disposal, stranger things have happened in sports.