Owen Hargreaves has not ruled out his chances of playing in the World Cup this summer although he admits he would need to make "progress pretty quick" in order to convince Fabio Capello of his fitness.
The Manchester United midfielder is due to make his return in a reserve match against Burnley in Altrincham tonight, having spent 18 months out of the game with tendinitis in both knees.
Now 29, Hargreaves is still unsure of how his knees will stand up to competitive football but remains optimistic that he can play again at the highest level.
"The World Cup is an incentive. Absolutely. But I need to see progress now, pretty quick, for the World Cup to become even a realistic option," he told the Daily Telegraph.
"[Capello] was happy with how I played for England. When he saw me play for Man United he was happy with how I played. Whether in Germany or England, a manager has always played me, especially to win big games. Maybe he sees that and would like me to have an impact on the World Cup. I would love that."
Such an outcome would help soothe the memories of a torturous period for the Canada-born player. "I could never have imagined in my darkest dreams something like this would happen to me," he said. "My athletic ability has taken me everywhere I wanted to go, from Canada to Germany, playing for England, playing for Man United. To have that temporarily taken away is humbling."
Hargreaves believes that the problem began in 2007, when he rushed to overcome a broken leg sustained while playing for Bayern. "I didn't have the same quality muscle as before. Instead of muscles taking the shock absorption, my tendon was. But when I got an ache, I didn't stop. I kept playing.
"It wasn't dealt with the way it should have been initially. I saw so-called specialists who said 'this is what you need and you will have absolutely no reaction' and I had a massive reaction. You like to think you will get the best advice possible but that is not always possible."
Hargreaves, nonetheless, rejected the idea that he might adapt his competitive style of play when he finally does return to United colours. "Injuries take time. It's not a question of can I go into a 50-50? I wouldn't hesitate in the slightest. It's more about managing my training, making sure I don't do too much. If I play, shall I do 30 minutes? 40 minutes? Only I can feel it. If you have had double knee surgery you're going to feel it."
