Tottenham Hotspur and England midfielder Scott Parker has revealed he believes it was his performance as a substitute against Denmark about a year ago that gave him another shot at international football.
The former West Ham United man never made it to Fabio Capello’s starting XI in the national side but it all changed when he gave one of his best performances in Copenhagen some 12 months ago. The 31-year-old was then made part of the squad that exists today.
While there have been many changes since then, John Terry was removed as captain of the team again and Fabio Capello resigned, Parker remains part of the team. He will be playing a big role when England take on Holland on Wednesday in a friendly.
Parker said in an interview:
“I don't think I ever lost hope that I could make it at international level. I crammed in a lot in one year. I realised time was ticking.”
Parker admitted his international career could have been brought to a premature end if he had not made his mark against Denmark. Coming on as a substitute after the first 45 minutes, Parker convinced the manager there was still time before he could be
pushed to the side for younger players.
According to Parker, he was still proud to represent his country on an international level and was looking forward to featuring against the Netherlands on Wednesday.
He revealed:
“It's a proud moment every time I pull on the England shirt. It's something I've always wanted to do, whenever I was playing outside, whenever I was playing at the park with my mates it was always England you try to emulate and try to be.”
The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder has featured in seven out of nine games for England, missing just the clashes against Ghana and Sweden. He has been so influential for the Three Lions that he recently won a prestigious award, voting for which was done
by the fans.
Parker continued:
“It's a great honour. Just looking at the names that are on the trophy it's quite an achievement. It's a proud moment for me, I'm delighted.”