WEST HAM defender Matthew Upson admitted he would be ‘bitterly disappointed’ to miss out on selection for England’s final 23-man squad to go to the World Cup in South Africa next month.

Upson has been included in Fabio Capello’s provisional 30-man squad and has featured heavily for his country under the Italian.

England have been undergoing altitude training in Austria and will fly back to compete in a friendly with Mexico at Wembley on Monday. They will then fly back out to their training base before taking on Japan in their final warm-up game before the finals, which gets underway on June 11.

“We are looking to the World Cup and my biggest focus is that right now,” Upson told the Hammers’ official website. “That is the only thing I am thinking about. Hopefully I will go and get on the plane and experience the World Cup. It could be great.”

Upson’s place is not guaranteed however, as he faces competition for spots with Tottenham duo Ledley King and Michael Dawson, as well as Rio Ferdinand, John Terry and Jamie Carragher.

“I would be bitterly disappointed if I wasn’t on the plane,” admitted the defender. “The manager knows who he wants to take. You have to take current form into it and look over the bigger picture of the last 18 months and the players he knows. Hopefully I have done enough to show him I am capable of stepping up to that level.

“It has been difficult this season but you can still perform no matter what. It has been tough mentally, physically and in every way but hopefully I will be involved in the squad.”