Joe Cole has been hailed as Chelsea's fittest player on the eve of the FA Cup final against Portsmouth. Cole has been named in Fabio Capello's initial 30-man squad for the World Cup finals in South Africa next month but still has to persuade the Italian he is worth a place in England's 23-man party.
The midfielder has not played regularly for Chelsea since returning from a knee injury in September but he insists that the lack of game time means he is in the perfect condition to make a huge impact in the finals.
"We did the fitness tests at Chelsea on Thursday and I am the fittest player in the squad," declared Cole.
"It's been a long hard season and some of the guys have played 50 games. I'm fresh and hungry. I just want to get out there.
"I'm looking to be on the plane, that's the goal. Once I'm on the plane I'll look to get in the starting 11 and once I'm in it I will look to win it."
