Forster hopes Southampton success can boost England chances
(Reuters) - Southampton goalkeeper Fraser Forster hopes he can perform well enough for the Premier League club next season and fulfill his ambition of becoming England's first choice goalkeeper ahead of next year's World Cup.
Joe Hart, who has 70 caps for England, is Gareth Southgate's first pick for the position while Stoke City's Jack Butland has returned from a lengthy injury setback to be back in the mix.
"I need to go out and play as well as I can for Southampton and try to force my way onto that plane," Forster, who has six caps since his debut in 2013, told the British media.
"If I play well then it puts the pressure on Joe (Hart) to be performing week in week out, then ultimately the manager has to make a decision.
"It's a huge season for everyone... I just want to come back and hit the ground running and have a great season."
Forster, who made 28 Premier League appearances for Southampton last season, is aware of the fierce competition.
"There's obviously quite a lot of English 'keepers around at the minute but I think if you look at Joe Hart he's the No. 1 at the minute," Forster said.
"I want to one day be England's No. 1 but that will take a lot of hard work."
England travel to Scotland for their World Cup qualifier on Saturday and Forster is expecting a tough test.
"It's obviously a crucial game that we want to win and we're under no illusions how tough that game will be," Forster added.
"It's important we go to Scotland and get those three points."
England face France in a friendly three days after the Scotland match.
(Reporting by Aditi Prakash in Bengaluru; editing by Sudipto Ganguly)