Jermain Defoe reckons he has staked a claim to be an England regular and wants to provide the goals to feed Fabio Capello's hunger for winning.Defoe has been in sparkling form since moving from Tottenham to Portsmouth, and he bagged two goals against Trinidad and Tobago in the 3-0 win on Sunday.

"I think there is a place up for grabs everywhere," said Defoe. "Everyone has come in and done well. The players against Trinidad that have come in have done well as well."

Defoe is among the players putting a case forward for regular inclusion.

"Obviously I hope so," he said. "There is a long way to go, we have a break now and I just want to have a rest and make sure I'm firing for the new season. I want to work hard and keep going."

The 25-year-old feels his form at the end of the season has vindicated his move to the south coast.

"When you play games you feel so much sharper, I've said that to so many people," he said.

"Obviously when you then get your goals your confidence goes up. I feel sharp.

"I've always said I just want to play football. Towards the end of my time at Tottenham I wasn't playing and it gets you down. You don't feel as sharp as you would like.

"I'm just delighted that I made the move to Portsmouth, it went well and we finished the season strongly. We won the FA Cup, I wasn't there but there is a buzz about the club. The club is going in the right direction and I'm delighted to make the move."

Defoe insists England are going in the right direction under Capello as well.

"As a player it helps when the manager shows faith in you, you play the first game and he watches the videos and you are back in there," he said. "When I saw my name was on the team-sheet I was delighted.

"He knows his football and his CV speaks for itself. He knows what he wants and he's a strong character. He puts his point across.

"I think he's happy. He just said to us after the game that at the end of the day he hates losing football matches and he wants to win every game.

"It's like all the players, we hate losing and it's important to get that winning mentality."

Defoe was paired with Dean Ashton in Port of Spain but the West Ham striker struggled to impose himself on the friendly.

"Personally I probably could have done a little bit better," Ashton said.

"It would have been nice to get a goal, but it wasn't to be. I was pleased with how it went and happy to get 45 minutes."

Ashton was making his debut nearly two years after breaking his ankle during England training.

"It's been a long wait to get that first cap and it feels brilliant," he said. "Nobody can take it away from me, but hopefully I've done enough to impress for the next squad."

Ashton is set to sign a new contract with West Ham this week.

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