Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain cannot wait to play alongside his England idols and prove that Roy Hodgson was right to take him to Euro 2012.
Arsenal midfielder admits dramatic rise to fame was unexpected
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain cannot wait to play alongside his England idols and prove that Roy Hodgson was right to take him to Euro 2012.
The Arsenal midfielder was the exciting new name in Hodgson's England squad for next month's European Championship in Poland and Ukraine.
It caps an astonishing rise to stardom for the £12million signing from Southampton, who only made his Gunners debut in August - in the 8-2 mauling at Manchester United.
"I couldn't imagine going from what happened at Old Trafford, which was totally embarrassing, to going to the Euros," Oxlade-Chamberlain told
The Sun.
"I'd come on as sub when we were only 3-1 down - so you might blame it all on me! It's something I never want to experience again.
"Now to get the call from the England manager is unbelievable. He told me I was being selected on merit and that he'd put me in the squad because he felt I could help the team.
"He mentioned that he'd seen me do well against AC Milan when I played in central midfield and that it was up to me to prove him right.
"Straight away that gave me a massive incentive to know you have a manager who believes in you and trusts you. It brought a big smile to my face.
"I'm going to do everything to show he was right to pick me."
Oxlade-Chamberlain faces the daunting prospect of entering an England dressing room alongside experienced professionals such as Wayne Rooney, Ashley Cole and John Terry.
Daunting
And he admits that he is nervous about the social side of things as the only player in the squad he actually knows is Arsenal team-mate Theo Walcott.
"Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard are players I've been watching for years and idolise," he added.
"I've got great respect for all of them and to have the opportunity to be with them, train with them and learn from them is something I'm really looking forward to.
"There's so much experience in that team so it would be an added bonus to play a few games.
"The main thing I worry about is just getting to know the boys. I idolise a lot of these players, so just to get to know them is a bit daunting.
"I worry about these little things but when I go there I'm fine. I'm quite a good people person, I make a lot of friends and I'm very approachable so I don't know why I worry about it."
Walcott, of course, went to the 2006 World Cup in Germany as an inexperienced Arsenal teenager but did not get a game.
Even so, Oxlade-Chamberlain is still looking forward to the challenge after speaking to his team-mate about his adventure six years ago.
"Theo told me he really enjoyed the World Cup even though he didn't play," he said. "He's been talking about the Euros and how exciting it will be.
"I don't really see us as rivals, we are friends. I've got a lot of respect for him as a person, he's very humble.
"I sit next to him in the dressing room, we play golf together and we even have the same hairdresser. We've always got on well, he always helps me and we have a good laugh."
Attention
Oxlade-Chamberlain, who can play centrally or on either flank, is already starting to discover the additional attention that comes with being an England player.
He added: "I'm just seeing the first bits of it and it's quite weird. But my agents Aidy and Rob warned me about it.
"It's a bit surreal. Since the squad has been named people who aren't Arsenal fans feel they can ask for your picture because you've been selected for the country.
"I don't see myself as some celebrity or anyone famous but it's all good. You've got to enjoy it while it lasts, I guess."
The player affectionately known as 'The Ox' could be set to make his England debut as early as Saturday in a friendly against Norway in Oslo.
The serious business begins against France on June 11th but there will be no showdown with Arsenal full-back Bacary Sagna, who has been forced out of the tournament through injury.
Oxlade-Chamberlain said: "I've been keeping my fitness up at Arsenal and saw Baca the other day. He just said, 'Watch out for France over there, you're going to lose'.
"It's now up to us to make sure he's wrong."
