Gerrard proud of England captain role

STEVEN GERRARD revealed his pride at being made England captain for tonight's friendly in Sweden as he set his sights on emulating his central midfield role models Patrick Vieira and Roy Keane.

Vieira and Keane both captain their club sides, just as Gerrard has started to do this season at Liverpool, with Sven-Goran Eriksson paying tribute to the increased maturity of the 23-year-old.

Indeed, when David Beckham and Michael Owen were both ruled out of tonight's game in Gothenburg, it was Gerrard to whom he turned as the stand-in skipper.

Gerrard, commented: "It's a great honour for me. It's something I dreamed of when I was a young boy and now it's here. It's only going to be a one-off occasion but I'm going to enjoy it. I'm really proud."

Gerrard has certainly cleaned up his act out on the pitch this season, without a single booking to his name.

It is the sort of transformation which Arsenal captain Vieira has made, while Manchester United skipper Keane has also managed to curb his temperament, while not losing his influence on his side.

In the absence of Beckham, Paul Scholes, Frank Lampard and Kieron Dyer, Gerrard is set to be given a central midfield role in Gothenburg tonight night, with Nicky Butt as his defensive shield.