Real Madrid [ Images ] centre back Jonathan Woodgate has confirmed he will play on loan in England [ Images ] this season in an attempt to get regular games and prove that he has overcome his long-standing injury problems.

"I'm going to go on loan for a year and I'll know which team I'm going to join in the next few days," the 26-year-old was quoted as saying in the Spanish media on Saturday.

"I like all the English teams that want me and it would be a positive step for me to go back to England. I need to play games in order to show that I'm strong and completely recovered.

"At Real Madrid it is difficult to have any continuity, but in a year I will come back to Madrid to prove that I am a good footballer."

Woodgate joined Real on a four-year deal from Newcastle United in August 2004 for close to 20 million euros (13.5 million pounds) despite the fact that he was suffering from a serious thigh injury when he was signed.

He did not play his first league match for Real until over a year later and his debut became the stuff of nightmares when he scored an own goal and was sent off against Athletic Bilbao at the Bernabeu [ Images ] in September 2005.

Although he produced some assured performances, a succession of later injuries to his ankle and thigh prevented him playing regularly and getting match fit.

He was on the verge of earning a return to the England squad in November when he suffered a hamstring tear in a league match against Real Zaragoza and his season ended when he had a recurrence of the injury in Real's 1-0 Champions League [ Images ] defeat by Arsenal [ Images ] in February.