Lallana ´hungry to impress´ for England

Adam Lallana is eager to impress England manager Roy Hodgson if given the chance against San Marino on Thursday.

The Liverpool midfielder missed the start of the season due to a knee injury, but has shone since returning to action and scored his first goal for his new club against West Brom last Saturday.

Lallana has been rewarded with a place in England’s squad for their Euro 2016 qualifying double-header against San Marino and Estonia this week, and is determined to prove his worth to Hodgson.

The 26-year-old’s former Southampton team-mate Nathaniel Clyne has earned a maiden senior call-up thanks to his early-season form, and Lallana is not surprised to see him join up with the national team.

“Being a fresh campaign, I’m always looking to impress,” he explained.

“As there is a lot of competition out there, I’m hungry to impress.

“Nathaniel Clyne has come on a lot over the last few years, and throughly deserved his England call-up.

“He’s a top-drawer player.”

With England taking on a San Marino side positioned bottom of the world rankings, Lallana acknowledged there was a certain element of players wanting to “fill their boots” in terms of goals.

However, he also warned of the risks that go with underestimating any opposing team.

“We’re not looking past the next two games, we want to get the job done. We’ve been working on how we want to play in training,” he added.

“We are preparing as normal and the three points is what we want.

“Players will want to fill their boots. But that’s the same in any game.”