Jamie Vardy has defended England teammate Danny Drinkwater after the midfielder rejected the opportunity to link up with the Three Lions for the friendlies with Germany and Brazil.

After making just one start and three substitute outings since May 6, Drinkwater showed a preference to work on his fitness rather than attempt to impress boss Gareth Southgate during the double-header at Wembley Stadium.

However, Vardy - who used to be a teammate of Drinkwater's at Leicester City - has said that the Chelsea man still has ambitions to represent his country at next summer's World Cup.

The 30-year-old is quoted by BBC Sport as saying: "He has been struggling to get a bit of match-time. He was injured and he needs to get the match sharpness back.

"He has been doing that in recent weeks for Chelsea and he needs to keep building that up. He definitely wants to play for his country."

Drinkwater has won three caps for England, the last of which came before Euro 2016.