Beattie scored seven goals for Stoke after joining the club in January

Stoke City's James Beattie is hoping to force himself into Fabio Capello's England squad when the Premier League season kicks off on 15 August.

The 31-year-old striker, who has five international caps, made his last appearance for England in 2003.

The former Southampton man told BBC Radio Stoke: "It's always in the back of your mind, but first and foremost I need to perform for Stoke City.

"If I can get that right, who knows. I'll keep my fingers crossed."

England's next World Cup qualifier is against Croatia at Wembley on 9 September.

Beattie, along with the rest of the Potters squad, returned for pre-season training on Thursday, in readiness for the club's tour of Austria.

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The former Everton and Sheffield United forward added: "We do the hard work now to set us up for the season, and the rewards are there for all to see.

"We help each other through it, and everybody will be pulling in the right direction. If one of the lads is struggling a little bit, the other lads will pull them through and help them along."

Beattie, a £3.5m acquisition from the Blades in January, scored seven goals in 16 matches to help Stoke finish 12th at the end of their first season in the Premier League.

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