Everton captain Phil Neville is backing Liverpool's Steven Gerrard to handle the England World Cup captaincy.

Neville believes Gerrard will display the same leadership qualities he does for the Reds on international football's biggest stage in South Africa.

"I played in the England team in which Steven made his debut in May 2000 against Ukraine and right from the stage when he was a young lad, you could see he was going to be a leader," said the Blues utility man.

"When John Terry was stripped of the armband, I thought Steven was unlucky not to get the nod ahead of Rio but now that he has got possession I don't think there will be any complaints."

Meanwhile, Neville feels coach Fabio Capello's decision to coax Jamie Carragher out of international retirement for the tournament will prove to be shrewd move.

He told liverpoolfc.tv: "He has been one of the best defenders in the Premier League for the past five or six years and has a wealth of experience; it looks a very astute decision by Fabio Capello to lure him out of retirement."