Ashton was out for 18 months after breaking an ankle in an England training session but is now fully fit and has been impressive for West Ham in pre-season.

The coach today said that he delivered an ultimatum to Ashton to shed some weight during the summer.

'We followed Dean in a lot of games last season and he was very good but he had injury problems before that,' said Capello.

'He has since told me he is fit now. I spoke with him in Trinidad and I told him he had to lose weight and be better physically because technically he is good but he is not quick.'