JJ vows to bounce back

Last updated : 01 April 2003 By Martyn Elliott

The youngster can consider himself unlucky not to have even made the bench for the senior game against Liechtenstein and after the poor performances given by David Beckham, Steven Gerrard, Paul Scholes and Danny Murphy he is even less fortunate to have been released to play for David Platt’s team.

But JJ is confident that he can win back his place in the Sven-Goran Eriksson’s squad.

"I have mixed feelings, I suppose. Obviously I want to be in the first team, but having come back to the Under-21s I know there is a better chance I will play 90 minutes against international opposition," he told The Journal.

"That will serve my development better and that is what Sven said to me and I agree with that. As soon as I found out I was going to play for the Under-21s, I came down immediately.

"It was a great experience to be in the senior squad, it's what I've always wanted to do and it was nice to go with them and see what goes on.

"I have to understand there are an abundance of world-class players in the England midfield and it will take time to get in there. All I can do is take my chance when it next comes."

While it’s difficult to argue with JJ’s point about the quality of players available to Sven its becoming more and more difficult to remember the last time one of them put in a world-class performance in an England shirt.