The Liverpool defender Glen Johnson has been a major doubt face the major competition for England in the World Cup qualifiers – Montenegro. However, the manager Roy Hodgson has confirmed that the player is expected to be fit for this crucial match.
The defender has been suffering from toe infection for more than last six months now. He did not take part in the World Cup qualifying match against San Marino a few days ago. England won this match quite comfortably after an 8-0 thrashing of the minnows. However, the real challenge will come in the form of the match against Montenegro.
Hodgson has admitted that the player is not fully fit, but he can play with the help of painkilling injections. Hodgson has said that the injury has once again occurred for the player ahead of the match with San Marino. This led to him not taking part in the match. England certainly need to win the match against Montenegro in order to avoid a potential play-off to qualify for the World Cup. The group winner takes the World Cup place without having to involve in any play-offs with teams from other continents. Montenegro are currently winning the race to finish in the first position ahead of England.
“In the Euros he had a slight toe problem which we had to look after. All of a sudden it has occurred, although not to the same extent. There is no doubt he could have played [against San Marino] – we could even have had him on the bench – but it would have meant an injection and I preferred to continue the treatment so he didn’t have to put a boot on. We hope it will get better in the next couple of days. If it doesn’t it might need an injection but there is no problem,” said Hodgson.