Ayala making good progress (11 Jan 2006 02:44 GMT)
Valencia's Argentinian international defender Roberto Fabian Ayala says he is making a good recovery from knee surgery and believes he will be back in action for the club in March.
"I'm feeling good and more relaxed after the operation because it showed that the knee was in good shape," the 32-year-old centre back told reporters at a news conference on Tuesday. "They cleaned out what was causing me the pain and I'm making excellent progress. I don't want to put myself under pressure but I think that I should be available for selection in March."
Ayala, who is a fixture in Jose Pekerman's Argentina squad, said that his number one priority was to recover his form for his club and that he was not thinking about his return to the national side.
"I'm very upset about not playing especially as the team (Valencia) have improved. I'm not thinking about the World Cup, but rather about playing and performing well for the club."
After making a shaky start to the season, Valencia have scrambled their way up to third place in the Primera Division table, six points behind Osasuna and 10 adrift of leaders Barcelona.
source : FIFA