Mertesacker: I am close to full fitness

Per Mertesacker says he is "90-95 per cent fit" and is very confident of returning in time for Euro 2012. The German international sustained an ankle injury in Arsenal's FA Cup fifth-round defeat to Sunderland in February, and has not played since. But the 26-year-old has made good progress in his rehabilitation and he is certain he will make this summer's tournament in Ukraine and Poland. "I am very confident because I have spoken to a lot of people in Germany and England - doctors, physios and coaches - and they are all very comfortable with my ankle," he told Arsenal.com "I think I am 90-95 per cent fit. For the past four weeks I have been doing quite a lot of rehab at Arsenal and recently some pitch work with the ball and I am very happy to be back in England because I spent quite a bit of time in Germany. "Now it's time to see the ball, the pitch and the guys again. It's a good feeling that the injury is going fine. I am very happy about it." Mertesacker says he does not know exactly what happened to cause the injury but insists he is only focusing on the future now. "It was a strange feeling," he said. "I had a header and when I was landing, I felt uncomfortable and it was a bit like something happened to my bone or my ankle. "But I don't want to look back at the situation, I look to see the positives. It was a bad feeling in general but now I am back and I'm looking forward to having some great games this summer."