Mark
Sep 6 2002, 09:30 AM
Steven Gerrard has insisted he feels like 'a new player' after swapping the World Cup for groin surgery in the summer.
The Liverpool midfielder admits he was devastated to have to pull out of Sven-Goran Eriksson's plans for the Far East showpiece, but with a big season at Anfield to look forward to he is confident he made the right decision to go under the surgeon's knife to cure his long-standing injury problems.
Speaking ahead of England's friendly with Portugal at Villa Park, Gerrard said: "It was a massive disappointment for me missing the World Cup. I could have definitely said 'yes, I'm fit enough to go to Japan' and then done the first couple of training sessions and maybe been fit for the first game.
"But my groin was not in the condition where I could have played three games in seven or eight days which is what England had to do.
"Towards the end of the season the groin got worse and worse and there were some games where I wasn't able to train beforehand and I just wasn't right. I wasn't getting the best out of myself in the games.
"I feel as if my groin is perfect now and I think I made the right decision to have surgery and since then I have felt like a new player and even sharper than before. Hopefully I can go on and realise the full potential and that I can be fit all season for Liverpool and be available for all the England games. That's my main aim."
The Liverpool midfielder admits he was devastated to have to pull out of Sven-Goran Eriksson's plans for the Far East showpiece, but with a big season at Anfield to look forward to he is confident he made the right decision to go under the surgeon's knife to cure his long-standing injury problems.
Speaking ahead of England's friendly with Portugal at Villa Park, Gerrard said: "It was a massive disappointment for me missing the World Cup. I could have definitely said 'yes, I'm fit enough to go to Japan' and then done the first couple of training sessions and maybe been fit for the first game.
"But my groin was not in the condition where I could have played three games in seven or eight days which is what England had to do.
"Towards the end of the season the groin got worse and worse and there were some games where I wasn't able to train beforehand and I just wasn't right. I wasn't getting the best out of myself in the games.
"I feel as if my groin is perfect now and I think I made the right decision to have surgery and since then I have felt like a new player and even sharper than before. Hopefully I can go on and realise the full potential and that I can be fit all season for Liverpool and be available for all the England games. That's my main aim."