Hamburg striker Ruud van Nistelrooy has tipped his Fulham counterpart Bobby Zamora to gatecrash England's World Cup squad.
Zamora has already found the net in the Europa League this season against the likes of Juventus, Wolfsburg and Shakhtar Donetsk to help Fulham into the last four where they play Hamburg in the first leg and Van Nistelrooy has added his voice to the calls for England manager Fabio Capello to give the striker a chance to test himself at international level ahead of this summer's World Cup in South Africa.
''I think Capello doesn't look at fashionable things - he just looks at the effectiveness more than anything else,'' Van Nistelrooy said. ''He's definitely a candidate now.
He's very important for the team. He holds the ball, he's a team player, works hard and he's an all-round striker.
''He has proven himself on a European level, which is also very important for him. Getting through against these teams and scoring goals in these games, it makes him more attractive for Capello.''
Van Nistelrooy says he has tracked Fulham's progress this season and is sure they will present Hamburg with a stern test at the HSV-Arena.
''They can beat anyone - that's what they have proved,'' the 33-year-old said. ''We're aware of that and we have to be very careful. They're a Premier League side who play week-in week-out against the best teams with the best players, so it will be a big test.''