Kazakhstan coach Bernd Storck has been at the centre of a club-versus-country row ahead of the World Cup qualifier against England in Almaty.

Storck, whose job with the Group Six minnows has appeared to be under threat, has accused clubs of not sticking to the fitness programmes that he has devised for his players.

"After holding the national team's training camp in Turkey in February I've given the players individual workout sheets so they could do aerobic work on their own," Storck said.

"But then I find out that coaches from three leading Kazakh teams, Aktobe, Tobol and Lokomotiv, are forbidding the players to follow my advice.

"When I wanted to attend a Lokomotiv training session, the club's head coach Sergei Yuran said it was a closed session. It's just amazing how these guys treat one of their own."

Storck feels fitness levels are holding his players back.

He added on ESPNsoccernet: "Kazakhstan are some 15-20 years behind most of the rest of Europe.

"The physical fitness and conditioning is the biggest problem because local teams pay little attention to it.

"If we don't show some improvements in this area we are not going to be competitive on the international level."