Upson out to upstage Terry

Hammers defender wants to keep England place

By Chris Burton   Last updated: 1st March 2008

Matthew Upson England

Upson: Back in England reckoning

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Matthew Upson hopes to show Fabio Capello that he is good enough to keep John Terry out of the England team when the pair go head-to-head at Upton Park on Saturday.

The West Ham defender returned to the international fold after a four-year absence in the Italian's first game in charge against Switzerland recently.

He has also played every minute of the Hammers' Premier League campaign this season and found himself thrust into the national team on the back of a number of impressive performances.

With the opportunity to test himself against the Chelsea skipper this weekend, Upson hopes that the face-to-face confrontation will help to bring out the best in him.

Pressure

"The pressure is on in the sense of the competition," he said.

"But that's healthy and it's also why it's a very difficult thing to achieve, just to get that shirt and make it your own.

"I've worked really hard to get back in the reckoning.

"If you achieve that or place yourself in the reckoning then you must be doing something right.

"I'm very pleased with the way things have gone. I'm really hungry to play for my country and I'll do whatever it takes to stay in there."