When Wales walk out at Wembley for their friendly against England on Thursday, Jordan James will be bursting with pride.But in a parallel universe, James might have pulled on the iconic white shirt of the Three Lions rather than the striking red one of Wales. The Hereford-born midfielder represented Wales at Under-15, Under-16 and Under-18 level.But in March 2022, James had a two-match spell for England’s Under-20s where he counted James Trafford, James McAtee and Jay Stansfield as teammates.However, when push ultimately came to shove, James’ ‘pride’ and ‘passion’ for Wales burned brightest.Why did James choose Wales over England?When asked by talkSPORT’s Laurence Mora about his experience testing the international waters, James described it as ‘a weird period’ and even revealed his father Tony, who is a proud Welshman, encouraged him to play for both nations to find out where his heart belonged.“For me, it’s always been Wales,” James said.“Even when I was really young, my dad was a player as well, he sort of pushed me towards the culture and what he knew. He was a massive impact in that.“But when I play for Wales, I don’t get that feeling anywhere else. It’s hard to explain.“There’s just so much pride and so much passion, I just knew it was right.“It was a weird period, the opportunity (to play for England’s U20s) came to me and I had to try it. My dad didn’t really like it too much, but he urged me to try it just to find out.“But it was always Wales.”James has 22 caps for WalesGettyJames’ international career at a glanceIt was exactly one year on from James’ first appearance for England’s U20s that he made his senior international debut for Wales, a one-minute cameo at the end of a 1-1 result against Croatia in March 2023.James’ first start for the Dragons came almost six months later in a scoreless draw with South Korea.Although James made his debut aged 18 years, eight months and 23 days, he could have earned his first senior bow at 17 given he was an unused substitute for a 1-0 loss to Poland in September 2022.With the opportunity to represent different nations in international football, the fact James made his decision at such a young age demonstrated his impressive maturity.However, it wasn’t exactly one he tossed and turned over.“It is (a huge decision to make), but I think you do get that feeling, I genuinely believe that,” James said.James began his career at Birmingham but now plies his trade with LeicesterGetty“When you play for a country, you will know where you feel you belong, and this is where I feel I belong.“I came up through the young ranks through Wales and they put so much trust in to me that I sort of had to repay it.“I feel like I’m doing that now and hopefully it happens in the future as well.”Why James is more ready than ever to ‘put a stamp’ on Wales’ clash against EnglandSince his senior international debut in March 2023, James has represented his nation on 22 occasions.Thursday could bring about the 23rd for the midfielder, who joined Leicester City from Rennes on a season-long loan last summer despite interest from Wrexham.An overwhelming amount of focus will be fixated on England and their manager Thomas Tuchel given his polarising squad announcement last Friday in which Jude Bellingham, Jack Grealish, Phil Foden and Adam Wharton were all left out.Craig Bellamy's 26-man Wales squad for October international breakGoalkeepers: Karl Darlow (Leeds United), Adam Davies (Sheffield United), Tom King (Everton)Defenders: Ben Cabango (Swansea City), Jay Dasilva (Coventry City), Ben Davies (Tottenham Hotspur), Ronan Kpakio (Cardiff City), Dylan Lawlor (Cardiff City), Chris Mepham (West Bromwich Albion), Joe Rodon (Leeds United), Neco Williams (Nottingham Forest)Midfielders: Ethan Ampadu (Leeds United), David Brooks (Bournemouth), Jordan James (Leicester City – on loan from Stade Rennais), Josh Sheehan (Bolton Wanderers), Sorba Thomas (Stoke City), Harry Wilson (Fulham), Joel Colwill (Cardiff City), Rubin Colwill (Cardiff City)Forwards: Nathan Broadhead (Wrexham), Liam Cullen (Swansea City), Mark Harris (Oxford United), Lewis Koumas (Birmingham City – on loan from Liverpool), Brennan Johnson (Tottenham Hotspur), Kieffer Moore (Wrexham), Isaak Davies (Cardiff City)Even though the quartet will be absent, the Three Lions still boast a star-studded line-up that has serious ambitions to win next year’s World Cup.But for James and his Wales teammates, they have no intention of being overawed by Thursday’s occasion at Wembley.“Wembley’s a place where all the big games are held, so being able to play there is massive for me,” James said.“But I just see it as any other game now. I’ve been in the game now for five years and I’ve grown a lot as a person and as a player. My confidence as a player is so much bigger than it was back then. “I feel like I can compete against the best players in the world and I can really put a stamp on the game. That’s what I’ve grown to do. “When I play these players, I don’t really fear them anymore. That’ll be the same for the next few games. I’ll go out there and do my best and hopefully that’s enough.”