The Portsmouth full-back won his last cap two-and-a-half years ago, on the eve of his 21st birthday, but his defensive flaws were exposed in Copenhagen and Denmark ran out 4-1 winners.

He was at Chelsea at the time and struggled to hold down a regular place following his high-profile move from West Ham - and it was the man who signed him at Upton Park who rescued him again.

Harry Redknapp took him on loan to Pompey last season before making the deal permanent in the summer, with the defender's current form keeping him in Fabio Capello's England squad to face France this week.

"You always get better as you get older and more mature," said the 23-year-old. "This is the first time I have been playing very regularly, except for when I first joined Chelsea, which is a long time ago now. Now I just want to play as much as I can. I have always had confidence in my own ability but Harry is now playing me every week which I am thriving on at the moment."