Eric Dier has insisted that England's meeting with Germany on Friday night cannot be described as a friendly due to the animosity between the two nations.
The Three Lions begin their preparations for next summer's World Cup with a couple of high-profile matches at Wembley Stadium, following up this week's clash against Germany with the visit of Brazil next Tuesday.
Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Dier, who is expected to play a part in both games, claims that the first of those encounters has a competitive edge to it as England are desperate to get one over the reigning world champions.
"I think the manager has already said that if we are going to play friendlies he wants to be playing the very best nations in the world and to challenge ourselves and I think that is the right mentality," he told reporters.
"These are two really big friendlies. I don't think there is ever going to be a friendly between England and Germany so we are really looking forward to it.
"I think the minute we qualified we had to start our focus on the World Cup. Everything we do from now onwards is with the World Cup in mind, so we are going to prepare for it in the best way we possibly can and that starts on Friday."
Dier has been capped 21 times by England, having also represented the Three Lions from Under-18s to Under-21s level.
Daniel Lewis
