He is now preparing with the rest of the squad for the World Cup qualifying double-header against Wales and Northern Ireland, but these halcyon days are in total contrast to the agony that Warnock went through earlier in his career and left him contemplating quitting the game.

Warnock told www.thefa.com: “I have broken my leg three times and had been out for three-and-a-half years trying to get fit.

“I broke my tibia and fibia twice in the same place and broke it the second time after three games when coming back.

“Then, after I had been back about four months, I broke my fibia again. I had a steel rod in by that time and the doctors said I would probably have broken both bones without it.

“It was tough. I remember the second time I did it I wanted to quit completely. I just thought: ‘I can’t be going through another eight or nine months of this’ because it is agony to do it.

“I didn’t think what I might do if I quit, I just thought I couldn’t go through it again. The surgeon wasn’t sure whether I could recover from the break and wasn’t sure whether he could do a good enough job to help me play again.

“But I was fortunate and once people came in from the Liverpool Academy to talk to me, I just knew I had to come back and give it a go.

“I’ve been lucky enough to be at a club like Liverpool and be surrounded by the right people who are willing to work with you out of hours and come back at night in their own time, when they shouldn’t even be working, and try to get you back fit. That encourages you.”

Warnock showed great resilience to overcome his setbacks and he has been rewarded with a place in the Liverpool side this season and now the England call from Sven-Goran Eriksson.

He said: “I’m 100% fit now. I don’t even think about it any more. It’s been a long recovery for me but it’s been well worth it.”