Report: Steve Gerrard Headlines Rotation of England Captains After John Terry Stripped of Job

Steve Gerrard has served as Liverpool captain since 2003, but only rarley has he done the same for England’s national team. That could soon change, as ESPN reports Gerrard will lead a rotation of England captains.

On Friday, John Terry was stripped of the England captaincy because he is being prosecuted for racially Queens Park Rangers defender Anton Ferdinand. His case will not go to trial until after this summer’s European Championships, but England’s FA decided that he would no longer lead the national team.

The ESPN report cites a source close to England manager Fabio Capello. The source says the Italian tactician will implement a system of rotating captains for England’s games leading up to Euro2012. He will start with the current vice-captain, Gerrard, when England plays the Netherlands on Feb. 29.

“An England squad will be selected next week and is sure to include Steven Gerrard, which means he is most likely to be named captain for that game but, of course, there is no guarantee that he will be fit at the end of the month when the game is played,” the report says. 

Capello is also thought to be considering Chelsea’s Frank Lampard, Manchester City’s Gareth Barry, LFC’s Glen Johnson and Tottenham’s Scott Parker as other options.

Gerrard has played 89 times for England, and served as its captain at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He has been left out of the England squad since Nov. 2010, as he battled injuries for much of the next 13 months.

Capello re-installed Terry as captain in March 2011 — he had been stripped of the role in Feb. 2010 after his alleged affair with a teammate’s girlfriend made headlines — to lead England through Euro2012 qualification.

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