West Ham United goalkeeper Robert Green admits defeat at Wigan wrecked a perfect week with England.
Green said: "Beating Croatia 5-1 on Wednesday was undoubtedly one of the highlights of my career.
"It was wonderful to be involved. It's given me a taste and a flavour for more.
"But you want to take that form into games for West Ham. You want to take the guys here to another level from the experience you've had with England. We didn't do that. It does put a dampener on it because what you do with your club reflects on how you do internationally. I feel I've got to earn my place even more now.
"If you're not playing well, you won't go to the finals. It's all based on form. Selection has nothing to do with reputations or anything like that.
"You've got to earn everything you get, so no, I'm not taking anything for granted.
"I know I've played in the last few England games but I'm not looking at South Africa and assuming I'll definitely be there.
"I got within touching distance of the last World Cup and got injured in the warm-ups. So I'm not counting my chickens.."
Green is not impressed by five points from four games and said: "It's not a great start. We've played Blackburn and Wigan away, games we won last season and we've got a point from those without scoring.
"That tells you everything you need to know. It's a reality check and one we've got to wake up from as the games won't get any easier."