Many people felt the England captaincy was cheapened after four players carried out the job in a friendly against Serbia and Montenegro nine months ago, among them Phil Neville and Jamie Carragher.

It was clear last night, though, that Steven Gerrard views things rather differently. Try telling him that against Sweden this evening his task means little more than guessing which way up a coin lands and wearing an armband.

In the absence of David Beckham and Michael Owen, the Liverpool midfielder will lead his country for the first time. The words "proud", "dream" and "honour" featured in Gerrard's conversation as he reflected on the news given by Sven-Goran Eriksson at training. Coming from a patriot whose most vivid childhood sport's memory is of Paul Gascoigne shedding tears as England were heading out of Italia '90, those could be taken as heartfelt.

With Gerrard also getting a chance here to play in his favoured central midfield role, rather than on the left of a diamond, he is unlikely to forget this trip in a hurry.

"It's something I dreamed of when I was a young boy and now it's here," he said of the captaincy. "It's only going to be a one-off occasion but I'm going to enjoy it. I'm really proud."

Though Gerrard described himself as surprised to be elevated to that role ahead of more experienced players, few will question his selection. He has thrived since getting the armband at Liverpool in October, leading by example and admitting the responsibility has taken his game "to the next level". A father these days, there is also a maturity about him.

As he talked about how he studies Patrick Vieira and feels he has some way to go to reach the level of the Arsenal captain and Manchester United's Roy Keane, it was plain Gerrard possesses the right attitude despite his rapid progress at the age of 23.

He seems to have moved on, too, from the days when he committed occasionally reckless tackles and was spotted drinking alcopops in a Southport bar before a World Cup qualifier.

In a disappointing season for Liverpool, Gerrard has stood out. He has looked particularly impressive since Dietmar Hamann returned from injury to play as the holding midfielder, allowing him a loose role from which he can get forward. He admits he would like to do the same for England.

"I think if you look at my Liverpool performances this year it goes to show that's my best role, central midfield and being able to bomb on," he said.

"I'm not really sure what (Eriksson's) plans are for the summer, but obviously here I have a chance to play the central role and hopefully impress him."

Clearly Eriksson has already been reasonably impressed. "On the pitch, he is a fantastic footballer. Off the pitch, I remember when I first met him and if I compare the man now to the young boy then, he has progressed enormously.

"He is very much more mature now and calmer. He deserves to be the captain and he's practising it a lot this season with Liverpool."

Asked if Gerrard could be a long-term replacement for Beckham, Eriksson added: "He could be, but sometimes Michael Owen has also been the captain and all three of them are good role models."

Eriksson has tended to use Gerrard on the left, partly to accommodate Paul Scholes in the middle and also because he does not feel the Liverpool man has the discipline to fill the holding role often given to Nicky Butt.

In public, at least, Gerrard does not argue with that assessment. "I think it's quite fair," he said. "Obviously part of my game is that I like bombing on and getting myself in the opponent's penalty area. I think when I play that sitting role I am urging to get forward and that's when the discipline comes, but I'm sure with experience I will fit into that role better."

Comparisons with Keane and Vieira bring out Gerrard's modesty. "One day I would like to be the same as them," he said and he is heading in the right direction, with his passing more sensible and varied these days, with a previous a tendency to hit over-ambitious diagonal balls being cut out.

"I go out there and try to set the example for everyone else to follow and give it my all.

"Vieira is a great role model. I watch him quite closely when Arsenal are playing on the TV, and he and Keane are very successful captains in the English game.

"One day, I'd like to be the same as them.

"It's a great privilege to be compared to world-class players like those two, but I still feel as if I have a bit to go to be on their level and be as successful as those two. They've had a lot more experience than me and they're older as well. Hopefully I can get to their level with experience and the success they've had in English football will come to me one day."

It helps, too, that his discipline this season has been good. Eriksson described Gerrard as calmer than when he first met him.

"With experience I've learned to control my aggression a bit and channel it in the right way," Gerrard said. "That part of my game has improved a lot.

"It was time to be a bit more sensible with certain challenges and not go in for stupid ones that I knew there was no chance of me winning and giving stupid free-kicks away. They're the type of things you learn with experience.

"As a young lad coming into the Liverpool team I was a bit over the top."

The public's eyes will be on Gerrard more than ever in Sweden tonight. Unbeaten in his 21 internationals so far, the signs are that the new England captain will not let his country down.