Rickie Lambert roared back to the sort of form that Mauricio Pochettino believes could take him all the way to the World Cup.

The England striker Lambert was recalled to the Saints side to take on Fulham after having to be content with a second half appearance off the bench at Manchester United last weekend.

He looked hungry to make up for lost time as he scored the opener against the Cottagers, hit the post and created the second Saints goal for Jay Rodriguez.

Pochettino was again singing the praises of his front man and said: “It’s very important for him to be in a club that is high up the table for his chances of going to Brazil to the World Cup.

“He’s more visible and more publicly known when a player is playing for a top club that is playing well for his future to the national side.

“It’s very important.”

He added: “I feel a special bond with my players and I wish they could all go to Brazil to the World Cup.

“I know that’s not possible but I’m not making those decisions but I wish him all the best.

“That’s something that Mr Hodgson has to worry about, not me.

“I want to congratulate my players. It was not just about the three points but also how we won.

“I think we played fantastically well.”

In the build-up to the game Pochettino had played down the significance of his decision to drop Lambert for the first time in his spell as manager for the game at Old Trafford.

Instead he preferred to focus on what a key man Lambert continues to be and he struck a similar note when talking about him again after the Fulham game.

“I have been saying for a couple of weeks that Rickie Lambert is an amazingly important player for Southampton,” said Pochettino.

“He showed how good he is and hopefully he can keep on putting in performances as he did and that will more than likely take him to Brazil.”