Ledley King insists he is capable of playing in every one of England's games at this summer's World Cup.
Defensive rock confident his body can last the pace in South Africa
Ledley King insists he is capable of playing in every one of England's games at this summer's World Cup.
The Tottenham defender's injury problems are well documented, with a long-standing knee problem preventing him from training and playing as often as he would like.
He has, however, been able to find a compromise which sees him take in as much rest time as possible, leaving him fresh for when fixtures roll around.
It is a philosophy which served Spurs well towards the end of the 2009/10 campaign and England boss Fabio Capello has embraced King's unconventional methods.
The Italian handed King a full 90 minutes against Mexico on Monday and has already hinted that the commanding centre-half will be on the plane to South Africa.
Some may consider that decision to be a gamble, but the player himself is confident he can handle his body in such a way that he will be raring to go whenever he is required.
Condition
He said: "I believe so. Towards the end of the season I managed to play three games in a week for Spurs so I do know that I can do it.
"I probably couldn't do it over a whole season, not every game, but over a short period I definitely can do it - with the medical team we have here and the right recovery programme so, why not? Yes I can.
"We've tried not to change anything with England compared to what I do at Spurs.
"The only difference was I joined up with England after a week where I didn't have a game so the knee was in relatively good condition going away to the training camp in Austria.
"But we still didn't want to overdo anything and jeopardise the game against Mexico. The game was the most important thing.
"The manager is prepared to trust me. He has been brilliant. He said 'do what you do at Tottenham' and the medical team here have done that with me."
King is also looking to make the most of any opportunities afforded to him this summer, with 19 international caps a disappointing return for someone of his undoubted ability.
Belief
He said: "I always believed I could play at this level.
"But then you start to have your doubts with the way the knee was going so it is probably a bit of a surprise how the season has turned around for me.
"People are always going to judge me on my fitness. I've missed a lot of games so it is kind of normal.
"But hopefully once I am playing on a regular basis, then hopefully people do stop asking me about my fitness.
"I also get asked if it was a big challenge coming back into the squad after three years but I've played with most of the players here before.
"It has been a while but I wouldn't say that was the difficult part."
