Daniel Sturridge is embracing his World Cup chance and says the England team are enjoying their preparations for Brazil.
Roy Hodgson's men met up last week for the first part of their build-up - a training camp in Portugal - and Sturridge revealed that the players have been working hard.
With another week on the training pitch at St. George's Park ahead of Friday's South American send-off against Peru at Wembley, the Liverpool striker believes that things are going well as they focus on the main event.
Daniel Sturridge is excited by the World Cup
“It’s been very enjoyable, everyone has been training very hard and it’s been a very professional camp," said Sturridge, who netted England's winner in their last game against Denmark in March.
“It is quite relaxed, but it is very professional in terms of training, in terms of off the pitch, in terms of nutrition. They are measuring all sorts of things and I think it’s important. Everything adds to what we are trying to achieve."
He continued: “There are youthful players, and I’m kind of in between. I’m not Raheem’s age, but I’m not Frank Lampard’s age – I’m in between. But everyone’s enjoying themselves, everyone’s happy."
Sturridge bagged 27 goals in 37 games for club and country this season and is looking forward to the chance to continue that in Brazil.
However, with this being his first World Cup, he's keen not to put any pressure on himself and is just looking forward to helping the team achieve success.
Sturridge and Rooney chat after training in Portugal
“I’m looking forward to it, I can’t wait to get there, I’m excited by it all," said the 24-year-old.
"I don’t feel any pressure in terms of the task ahead because we’ve prepared for this. When you are young you always want these moments.
"This is my first World Cup and it’s a lot of the other players first World Cups. We’re just embracing it all, it’s not about feeling pressure."
He added: “For me it’s just about playing my natural game and not worrying about scoring goals. When you put pressure on yourself sometimes they don’t come and you don’t perform as well as you’d like to.
“I think it’s more important to help the team win games, it’s about the team’s performance and us working as a unit. It’s not individuals, it’s about is going out there and trying to do a job.
“I just know that we’re going to go out there and implement the tactics that the manager tells us.
"We’re going to work hard, enjoy it, embrace the moment and not feel the pressure. We just want to go out there, play the way we play and try and do as well as we possibly can."
England meet Peru at Wembley on Friday 30 May - their final game on home soil before the World Cup. The last few tickets remain, so to make sure you don't miss out, click here to buy your tickets online.
