Andy Carroll has admitted that breaking back into the England squad ahead of next year's European Championship remains a "big target" as he continues his recovery from injury.
The West Ham United striker has been on the sidelines since February as a result of his latest setback, which halted him in his tracks following a run of five goals in 14 games.
Carroll has been plagued by numerous niggling issues in the past, with hamstring, knee, heel and ankle injuries restricting him to just 46 Premier League starts in the last three seasons.
Despite the frustration of missing large spells of the past few campaigns, the 26-year-old is confident that he has the ability to secure a spot on the plane for France 2016.
"For every English player, Euro 2016 is a big target," he told the London Evening Standard. "Play well and hope for the best. At the minute my focus is on getting fit. I believe in my ability and if I am back fit, scoring goals I don't see why I couldn't be in the England squad.
"Every time there has been a game I have had some niggle or some injury and I've just missed out on that. I got injured again before the last game, it's just been bad timing. As soon as I am back fit, I will forget about the injury and get moving again.
"I don't really dwell on my injuries and think, 'I can't go into this tackle because I might do this again'. A lot of players do but I forget about them and when I'm back fit and someone asks me which knee it was, I'll have to look for the scar to remember which one."
Carroll has nine England caps to his name, the last of which came back in October 2012.
Daniel Lewis
