Hughes: Zamora for England
New Fulham manager Mark Hughes says Bobby Zamora is in good shape ahead of the Premier League season and deserves a chance to play for England.
Zamora is one of the names that Fabio Capello said he was looking at before England went to the World Cup in South Africa. He was named in a team of the future for England despite the fact he is now 29 years of age.
Hughes has said that he is happy to have inherited a very good squad at Fulham and Zamora is likely to start in attack for the club when the Premier League gets under way shortly.
Zamora does have a high number of attributes that would give him a chance of doing well in an England shirt. However, England's poor showing at the World Cup now means there is a chance for many other players to break in to the side.
Player attributes
Zamora is a typically English centre forward in the respect that he is physically intimidating and strong. This allows him to hold off the challenges coming in from different defenders, he can keep the ball and then play it back to the midfield or out wide.
He is a very good header of the ball and this makes him deadly from set pieces. It's important for strikers to be good in the air because it provides an extra angle to their game and allows them extra chances to score during important games.
He does not appear to be egotistical, which would make him important in the England side. He did not sulk when he realised he was not going to the World Cup, he just got his head down and continued to work hard.
Hughes said: "We'll give him every opportunity to show what he can do. If he plays well for Fulham then he may get recognition at international level. He had a great season. What Bobby needs to do is obviously build on that and become a consistent scorer for seasons to come."
Other players
The problem for Zamora's England chances is that a number of other players will now see a chance to break into the England set-up. Darren Bent was the highest scoring English player in the Premier League last season for Sunderland and he will be higher up the pecking order.
There is also Carlton Cole at West Ham United who is a very exciting player to watch. He has been in the fringes of the England squad before and is a very similar player to Zamora. It's not going to be an easy task for the Fulham front man.
Hughes added: "It can't be that you just have one standout season and you don't build on it. That wouldn't be acceptable for any player. Certainly, from our point of view, we will drive players on to achieve what they're capable of. Bobby is a player who can achieve as much as he wants."
Betting advice
Zamora will be zoned in on Fulham and won't be thinking about playing for England just yet. He has to produce the goods for his club before Capello gives him a chance at international level.
This means he is likely to start the season by running around like a mad man. Have a punt on him to score in Fulham's first, second or third game because he will want to get off of the mark early on. Also have a bet on him to be top scorer at the West London club by the end of the season because he's one of the most important players that Fulham have.
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