Vermaelen hopes to face England

Thomas Vermaelen is hoping he can overcome a groin injury in order to be fit to play in Belgium's friendly against England on Saturday.

Arsenal defender has been carrying a groin injury in recent weeks

Thomas Vermaelen is hoping he can overcome a groin injury in order to be fit to play in Belgium's friendly against England on Saturday. The Arsenal defender has been carrying the problem for several weeks and is rated doubtful to potentially line up against some of his club colleagues. However, Vermaelen, who missed two months towards the start of the season after undergoing an ankle operation, is determined to be involved against England. "I've been struggling for a few weeks now with my groin," Vermaelen told Sky Sports News.

Big game

"Of course, it's a friendly game, but it's a big game for us against England at Wembley. "Everybody wants to play in that game and I'm doing everything to get fit to play in that game." Vermaelen is aware of the quality within the England squad, but does not believe any of the Belgium players will be caught by surprise at the weekend. He added: "I think everybody watches a lot of the English games in the national team so I'm not worried. "Everybody knows the players from England and everybody knows the quality, so it's not a big problem."