Defender Nico Schlotterbeck believes he can return into the German national team swiftly now that he is back from a knee injury, and aims to be a regular starter there for next year’s World Cup.

Schlotterbeck tore his meniscus in spring and returned to action last weekend for his club Borussia Dortmund in a 1-0 Bundesliga victory over Wolfsburg.

Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann nominates his squad next week for World Cup qualifiers against Luxembourg on October 10 and Northern Ireland on October 14.

Schlotterbeck told Friday’s Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung he was “quite optimistic in general because it already worked out for 90 minutes” against Wolfsburg.

“I will discuss it with the club. It all depends on how the knee feels,” he said, aiming to get more playing time.

Nagelsmann could use Schlotterbeck well as the defence has appeared vulnerable and another centre-back, Antonio Rüdiger, is injured.

Schlotterbeck said he has been in “a very good” exchange with Nagelsmann and that “it is my aim to secure a place as a starter until the World Cup.”

Schlotterbeck added he was happy to be back after half a year on the sidelines.

‘The worst thing about the injury was not being able to play in front of the fans any more. It was like cold turkey from adrenaline. I missed it terribly. We footballers are adrenaline junkies who need competition and fans,” he said.