Fulham FC striker Bobby Zamora spoke for the first time about his World Cup heartbreak - admitting: I'm so depressed.
The Fulham striker was set to gatecrash Fabio Capello's England squad after a string of top displays in the Premier League and Europe.
But Zamora's dream of playing for his country this summer has been left in tatters by an Achilles tendon problem - picked up during last month's Europa League semi-final against Hamburg.
The injury meant Zamora was only able to play 55 minutes of the 2-1 defeat against Atletico Madrid at Wednesday night's final in Hamburg.
It also forced him to tell Three Lions manager Capello that he could not be included in his provisional 30-man squad, which was announced on Tuesday.
Zamora said: "I told Fabio I was struggling and knew that had I have gone I wouldn't have done myself or England justice.
"It was a decision between four lots of people to be honest - our medical team, their medical team, myself and the England management team.
"It's very disappointing but I'm looking at the bigger picture.
"The World Cup is a massive tournament. It's not about myself, it's about England.
"Fabio wished me the best and hoped I'd get fit and be available next season.
"In the final I was struggling to play. It's one of those things, it came at a bad time.
"The last five weeks have been terrible. It's been an up-and-down season as it's been so good on the pitch and to now pick up this injury has kicked me in the teeth.
"I have been sat at home feeling depressed. I'm absolutely gutted."
Zamora will be speaking to the Fulham medical team this weekend to see whether he requires surgery during the close season.
He said: "I'm going to talk to the medical guys again in the next couple of days and see what's happening. But I've got something pencilled in for next week if we go that route."
The ex-West Ham and Spurs ace has gone from zero to hero.
He has scored 19 goals to help fire the Cottagers to their first major European final.
And Zamora said: "It's been a success, I suppose. It's been a lot of hard work and determination.
"I was out there to prove people wrong. But I just wanted to work hard and do well for the club.
"Last year, because I only scored a few goals, everyone just looked at that and didn't look at the bigger picture.
"But I knew the goals would come, it was just a matter of time.
"So I worked on holding the ball up, bringing people into play AND scoring goals this season.
"I'm extremely pleased with the way the season has gone - not just for myself but the rest of the team.
"Everyone this year has been first class."