Manchester City's England contingent are trying to persuade
team-mate Wayne Bridge to reverse his decision to quit the national
side.
Bridge made himself unavailable for England selection last
month following newspaper reports of an affair between his former
girlfriend and his ex-Chelsea team-mate John Terry.
Bridge said the alleged affair had made his position in the
England set-up "untenable and potentially divisive" but his City
team-mates have not given up hope of persuading him to change his
mind in time for this summer's World Cup.
City and England midfielder Gareth Barry told the Sunday
Times: "I'd like to see him go.
"Time can change people's opinions sometimes and hopefully
that will happen with Wayne. He doesn't want to sit down in a few
years' time and regret anything. World Cups don't come around too
often and it might be a last time to do something, but I'll respect
his decision. He's been to a World Cup before.
"We'll have another go. I think there have already been
conversations between the lads and Wayne and there could be a time
when we see what he's thinking and may put our opinion across."
Barry admitted it even felt strange for him to return to the
England set-up after the alleged affair - which led to Terry being
stripped of the national team captaincy - had become public
knowledge.
"It was a bit awkward for me but you have to put that aside
because you're a professional," he added.
"You're going there to do a job and work with each other and
you can't think about it too much. As professionals we got on with
the job."
Bridge is set to be sidelined for a month in any case
following a hernia operation, but his return to the England squad
would be a boost for manager Fabio Capello. First-choice left-back
Ashley Cole is fighting to overcome an ankle injury and other
contenders like Stephen Warnock and Leighton Baines are lacking in
international experience.
