England captain ready for World Cup opener.
Steven Gerrard has declared himself confident that he will be fit to line up for England and face Italy on Saturday in his side’s World Cup opener, reports the Daily Mirror.
The England captain had been struggling with a groin strain which meant he only played 45 minutes against Honduras on Saturday night and could not train with the rest of the squad on Monday.
However, the Liverpool star has made it clear he expects to take on the Italians which will prove to be a huge relief for Roy Hodgson and the rest of the England camp.
Gerrard puts his powers of recovery down to a regimented routine of stretches and exercises post-match and they will have him ready to fire in England’s first contest of the 2014 World Cup.
This leaves the only serious injury concern for England being Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who is certainly set to miss the contest on Saturday evening. The Arsenal midfielder is recovering well from a knee injury sustained against Ecuador but he is only likely to return in time for the final group stage game against Costa Rica.
Compared to recent major tournaments that England have contested, they are enjoying a relatively clean bill of health as they prepare for the tests ahead in Brazil.
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