There are three stand-out nominees for the job of England football captain - John Terry, Rio Ferdinand and Steven Gerrard. All three are captains of their respective club sides and all in the latter stages of their 20s. All three are ideal candidates but who should be given the armband on a full-time basis?

They have all captained their country at different times but only Terry was given it originally as a full-time job. As much as I admire the other two, I believe that Terry is and would be the best appointment Fabio Capello could make. Gerrard does seem to relish the role of club captain at Liverpool and Ferdinand is the same with Manchester United.

However, Ferdinand in particular has been known to be rather petulant and moody when things are not going his way. This, of course, is natural for a competitive sportsman yet when the choice is so close between the three then more emphasis is placed on scrutinising each individual's pros and cons. The missed urine sample in 2003 was one incident which puzzled many and Rio was banned for eight months. He has a string of speeding offences and was done for drunk-driving in 1997.

Ferdinand also courted trouble with his live on-air gaffe with Chris Moyles. He called Moyles a faggot after the chubby DJ asked him if he had to choose between Alan Smith and Paul Scholes, who would it be? The Moyles incident is funny and was completely blown out of proportion, mainly because Ferdinand is a high-profile player. It's ridiculous. If it had been Alan Carr or Eddie Izzard who had made such a comment, it would have been hilarious.

Gerrard's personal life has been one of misfortune. In October 2007, he was involved in a low-speed car accident, knocking down a ten-year-old boy. The child was not seriously injured and Gerrard visited him in hospital with a pair of signed football boots. Two months later. whilst playing an away fixture for Liverpool in the Champions League, his house was burgled. Very unfortunate.

All three have been there or thereabouts when a few drunken shenanigans have gone on. So what? They are young men enjoying themselves and they are of course loaded. Ferdinand is a joker in the pack and has learnt his lessons from incidents years ago. It's only his attitude on the park I would question at times, even though he is an imperious footballer with more natural ability than Terry.

Terry seems to be a better role-model and leader of teams than Ferdinand. Gerrard is different and inspires through some quite stunningly powerful midfield performances. He is a bit of a one-man band, though, and perhaps takes all of Liverpool's troubles on his shoulders and can't quite channel that passion properly at international level. Gerrard at times seems pre-occupied in an England shirt.

I won't really go into detail about their credentials as players as we all know how good they really are. England is very lucky to have such talented players. It is moulding them and finding the right formation and tactics that seems to be the stumbling block.

But I still think that John Terry just, and I mean just, edges out the other two.