Stoke’s Jon Walters ‘raring to go’ for World Cup qualifier

Stoke City striker Jon Walters cannot wait to represent his country once more as they prepare to take on Austria in a World Cup qualifying showdown.

Walters was set to take on fellow Potters star Marko Arnautovic when the two nations meet at the Aviva Stadium on Sunday but the winger is suspended and will miss the qualifier.

And the veteran forward believes his teammate’s absence can only serve as a positive for the Boys in Green, despite his inconsistent season at the Bet365 Stadium.

“He’s been a little bit inconsistent this year but when he’s on it, he’s a very difficult player to play against,” said Walters. “But, as we’ve alluded to, they’ve got a very strong team and sometimes it’s the players sitting in the background that are dangerous.

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“We saw that ourselves against Wales. We were depleted then and still gave a good performance. But Marko is a big miss for them. He can create something out of nothing.”

Walters is fit to face Austria as Ireland look to extend the gap to their group rivals, having beaten them in Vienna last year.

But the former Ipswich man is under no illusions about Ireland’s position in the group and believes they must get over the line as soon as possible and qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 2002.

He said: “There’s still a long way to go.

“The gap would be bigger but we know that even if we win, there’s some very difficult games ahead.”

“I’m feeling fine. I trained the last few days and I’m raring to go for tomorrow.”