Fulham have signed England left back Wayne Bridge on loan from English champions Chelsea until the end of the season, Fulham announced on Thursday.

Bridge is hoping that his arrival at the Craven Cottage will boost his chances of making England's squad for the World Cup finals in Germany.

"I'm really happy to join Fulham for the remainder of the season because I think that the next few months is an incredibly important period for me to be playing regular football," Bridge told the club's official website.

"Fulham is a nice club with a great atmosphere, but most importantly they play good football under Chris Coleman; and although I did have other choices offered to me, this seemed to be the best option for me at this time," he added.

After returning from a long injury layoff in October, the 25-year-old defender found himself down the pecking order behind Spanish first choice Asier Del Horno.

The England international set his sights on a WC place next summer; his last international appearance came in a 3-2 friendly win over Argentina in November.

Fulham manager Chris Coleman expressed his delight at landing Bridge as well as his acquisitions in the January transfer window.

"Wayne Bridge is a world class player and even though he is only just returning from injury, we are more than delighted to have him on board for the remainder of the season," he said.

"Therefore with the securing of Tony Warner's services and the signing of Simon Elliott, Antti Niemi and now Wayne I am more than happy with the way things are progressing this window," he added.