Fraizer Campbell has spoken of his desire to resurrect his England career – while playing for Cardiff City in the Premier League.
It was just over a year ago that the former Sunderland striker earned his solitary international cap against Holland, though bad luck with injuries prevented him adding to his tally.
The Yorkshireman is fully focused on the Bluebirds’ promotion bid for now, but he realises that if Malky Mackay’s men can get over the line in the coming weeks, the shop window will be there for him to possibly wear the Three Lions once more.
Cardiff are seven points clear at the top and have a game in hand with seven Championship fixtures left, starting at Watford this Saturday.
Striker Campbell knows what it will take for City to earn promotion, having been promoted with Hull City five years ago, scoring 15 goals along the way, while he has played Premier League football for Manchester United, Spurs and Sunderland.
“It would be magnificent for everybody, fans, players and staff, if we can go up this season,” he said. But I’d love to play for my country again and if I can play on a regular basis for Cardiff and impress every week there is always the chance of playing at international level. The important factor is that I must focus on playing for Cardiff City, enjoy my football and know that if I play well enough consistently then international rewards will come. My aim is to perform at the highest level possible.
“I have played Premier League football before, but my ambition now is to compete at that level for Cardiff City. We have done well as a team so far and it would be fantastic for everybody if we can secure promotion. This club has been close to making the step up for a long time now and it would be magnificent to give the fans what they desire.
Everybody talks about how the club has been close to going up before, but a lot of the players here have not experienced that disappointment, That includes me and those experiences from the last few seasons won’t make a difference to us this time.
“Fans may be jittery as the season comes to a close, but the players have to ignore all that. We have done really well so far as a squad and I believe we can finish the job. We are top of the Championship and we are not there by luck. We have a strong squad which is full of quality and everybody in our dressing room believes we can push right through to achieve our goal.”
Huddersfield-born Campbell, 25, was hurt during Cardiff’s 3-0 home win against Blackburn Rovers. He could be doubtful for their crunch clash with third-placed Watford at Vicarage Road on Saturday (5.20pm) and is being assessed.
Joe Mason, who went on for Campbell, is the likely replacement alongside captain Craig Bellamy against the Hornets.
It’s been a long and varied journey for Campbell since he first linked up with his boyhood idols Manchester United at the age of 10, going on to earn a senior professional contract and make four first-team appearances. Having learned his football lessons alongside Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo and Co at United’s Carrington training ground, Campbell moved on and played for Royal Antwerp, Hull, Spurs and Sunderland before arriving in Cardiff during the January transfer window. And he is intending to settle in South Wales over the next few seasons.
“I’ve moved around a fair bit in my career and I’d love to stay with Cardiff for some time,” he says. “That, of course, means playing well and helping this club progress. I was keen to stay at Sunderland, but injuries set me back and it didn’t quite work out as I had hoped.
“The problem is that when you are not playing it’s easy to get stuck in a rut. It’s upsetting, you can feel downhearted and standards drop in training. It was simply the way things turned out, but it felt good to sign for Cardiff and start afresh here in January. Now I’ll do all I can to help City earn promotion. I’d love to think that with the right attitude, a lot of hard work and a bit of luck I can help Cardiff go up and stay up. I want to be playing Premier League football. Any footballer aspires to be there. It’s the best League in the world.”
Campbell’s six goals for the Bluebirds, his latest a first-half header against Blackburn, have come in 11 appearances and he says: “I’ve loved my time here and to score the only goal on my debut at Leeds was a fantastic feeling. That has to be my favourite because my dad supports Leeds and it was good to wind him up. I think it was bitter-sweet for him as he was celebrating my goal at the same time as feeling annoyed that his team lost.”
Cardiff have been top of the Championship for more than four months now and will still be out on top no matter what their result against Watford in front of live Sky cameras this Saturday.
A total of 2,600 Bluebirds fans will fill the away section at Vicarage Road and Campbell says: “The fans have been brilliant, home and away. They travel in their thousands, while our home stadium is a magnificent place to play. “Our home pitch is right up there with the best Championship playing surfaces, while we have a squad who are together and playing for each other every step of the way. That’s down to the manager, Malky Mackay, and his staff. He is easy to approach and get on with, but will also tell you if you’re doing something wrong. There is a lot of respect for the gaffer from every player and you always want to do well for somebody you get on with.”
Now, with seven matches left, City are closing in on the dream of promotion.
“We know what we have to do, but from the day I arrived nothing has changed,” says Campbell. “The atmosphere hasn’t altered in the slightest. Everybody is relaxed and enjoying their football. Team spirit is high and we are focused on finishing the job. It is vitally important to take it game-by-game. This is when we need every player to be at their best because we’ll need more than just 11 players over these remaining matches. We have a good enough squad to power through, but the only match which matters right now is Watford away.”
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