England striker Daniel Sturridge is fit and raring to go ahead of Tuesdays friendly against Germany at Wembley. The 24-year-old Liverpool forward missed the 2-0 defeat by Chile on Friday because of a foot injury. Germany will be without Arsenals Mesut Ozil and Bayern Munich pair Philipp Lahm and Manuel Neuer. Sami Khedira was already absent with a knee injury, but coach Joachim Low has rested Ozil, Lahm and Neuer to try new tactical variations and personnel. Low said: They are the absolute backbone of our team and, for me, it is more important to give others a chance against such a strong team as England. England defender Phil Jones will miss the game because of a groin problem. “This is not a real friendly game. England are playing Germany and its always a big rivalry” Michael Ballack Former Germany midfielder The 21-year-old Manchester United player sustained the injury in Fridays loss and has returned to his club. His United team-mates Michael Carrick and Danny Welbeck have already been ruled out through injury. But England boss Roy Hodgson will hope he can call on some of the players who missed the Chile game as his side will still come up against a strong Germany team, who are second in Fifas world rankings, eight places above England. Tottenham right-back Kyle Walker could recover from injury in time to be available while skipper Steven Gerrard and forward Rickie Lambert will be assessed when they report back to Englands base in Watford on Sunday. Sturridge said: Ive had a lot of treatment last few days, Ive been working hard to make sure Im okay. Its not a serious injury so Im hopeful that it doesnt continue to linger on. Ive been playing with it for the past couple of games and its been hindering my performance. But I had a scan and Im ready to go, Im delighted the pains not too bad and Im looking forward to it. Low may be without Bayern defender Lahm and goalkeeper Neuer, plus midfielder Ozil, but he could include the likes of Bayern attackers Thomas Muller and Mario Gotze, plus Borussia Dortmunds Marco Reus. Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker also joins the squad after missing the 1-1 draw with Italy on Friday because of illness. Khedira, 26, tore a cruciate knee ligament in the friendly in Milan and could be out for six months, putting his World Cup place in doubt. Low said he was optimistic the Real Madrid midfielder would be fit in time for the tournament, starting in June. Both England and Germany qualified for Brazil 2014 by topping their respective groups. And former Germany midfielder Michael Ballack said Tuesdays game would be taken a lot more seriously than most friendly fixtures. He told BBC Radio 5 Lives Sportsweek: I dont see England as being the same level as teams like Germany or Spain. Theyre a bit behind. They have a lot of talented players, but are still a big name. We always had great respect when we played England. This is not a real friendly game. England are playing Germany and its always a big rivalry. The ex-Bayern and Chelsea player added: At the next World Cup, England must use their name, use their quality and have confidence. Then everything is possible. When Germany goes to a big tournament we know we have to deliver because teams before us have done it.
Posted on: Sun, 17 Nov 2013 17:46:15 +0000
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