Defender moved to the Cardiff City Stadium from Tottenham for £8.5m on Wednesday.
Steven Caulker admits the thought of representing England at the World Cup influenced his surprise move to Cardiff.
The Bluebirds paid Tottenham a club-record fee of £8.5 million to bring the 21-year-old to the Welsh capital as manager Malky Mackay continues to strengthen his squad prior to the the club’s debut season in the Premier League.
Despite playing 28 times for Spurs last term Caulker feared he would be pushed further down the pecking order at White Hart Lane by boss Andre Villas-Boas in the upcoming campaign and opted to seek first-team football elsewhere.
And the centre-back acknowledged that he hopes his return to Wales, where he spent a year on loan at Swansea in 2011/12, will allow him to challenge for a place in Roy Hodgson’s Three Lions squad ahead of the World Cup in Brazil next year.
“I am looking at the World Cup next summer,” he told the Daily Mail.
“I was at a stage of my career where I wanted to play regular football – I don’t want to put my career on hold. I want to progress myself and Cardiff.
“It wasn’t a case of me wanting to leave. I was at a stage where I wanted regular football and Spurs have three fantastic centre halves. I didn’t want to be fourth choice. These chances don’t come often and I wanted to back myself.”
COMMENTS