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Danny Williams fears his World Cup dream is over.

Royals’ midfielder has been struggling with an injury to his right knee since returning from international duty with the United States in early March.

He had a minor operation and returned to the side after three weeks out but aggravated the problem again following the 1-0 win at Charlton on April 5.

He missed the following game at Bournemouth but did manage to feature against Leicester, Wigan and Middlesbrough before sitting out the final two matches of the season.

And with his knee showing no real signs of improvement, Williams admits that his prospects of making it to Brazil look bleak.

“At the moment it doesn’t look good,” said Williams, who has pledged his long-term future to Reading .

When asked if he would require another operation to try and fix the problem, he added: “I don’t know yet, I have to see.”

USA coach Jurgen Klinsmann is a big fan of Williams and will give him as long as possible to prove his fitness.

Klinsmann is expected to announce a provisional 30-man squad on Monday who will then meet up on Wednesday for a training camp at Stanford University in California.

The USA then have friendlies against Azerbaijan in San Francisco and Turkey in New Jersey, before Klinsmann has to reveal his final 23-man squad who will travel to Brazil.

Missing out on the World Cup is a worrying prospect for Williams, who has enjoyed a fine debut campaign with Royals having arrived from Bundesliga side Hoffenheim last June.

But the 25-year-old says ensuring he is fully fit for next season is his main priority.

“I have to get my knee straight because to be healthy is the most important thing,” he said.

“I have the World Cup in my head, of course I do. It’s so close now.

“But a lot of people don’t believe it when I say that my priority is Reading.”

Due to his injury, Williams was forced to watch Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Burnley from one of the executive boxes at Madejski Stadium.

That allowed him to keep an eye on Brighton’s game with Nottingham Forest and he watched as Leonardo Ulloa headed home the goal that condemned Reading to another season in the Championship.

“I was in a box upstairs and had the TV on so I saw it when it happened,” he said.

“It was disappointing. I think the lads put a great shift in against Burnley.

“They showed how much they wanted to win but at the end of the day we are not in the play-offs and we are disappointed.”

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