GERRARD: I HAVE TO ACT LIKE OWEN AND BECKHAM

Hours after the national team manager, Sven Goran Eriksson had warned against the English drinking culture, Gerrard was spotted out in Southport, leading to a storm of criticism.  Although this is unlikely to have finished yet, with club boss Gerard Houllier also believed to want talks with the midfielder.

Gerrard looked under-par against Greece, like so many of his team-mates, and he admitted that David Beckham's wonderful free-kick saved the players from a bad situation getting worse.  Had England failed to qualify, undoubtedly those members of the squad that had chosen to socialise would have come in for more scrutiny.

"When we were losing 2-1, I thought a bad week was going to turn into a nightmare," admitted Gerrard.

"But it has worked out well for England and everything that has happened to me might act as a jolt.  To be honest, I didn't really think I had done anything wrong.  I went out for a meal with my girlfriend and friend and I wasn't drunk or anything like that.

"I would say the timing wasn't the best, but I don't think I was guilty of anything more than being a bit naive.

"These are the things that happen when you are a young player and you have to learn from them.  I intend to do that because the last few days haven't been nice.

"Until this week I didn't realise how people will deliberately go out of their way to make trouble for you.  It was a horrible feeling knowing that I was going to be in the papers for all the wrong reasons.

"There have been a couple of things off the field lately and incidents on the pitch where I have had bad headlines, but I know I will sort things out because I have the right people around me to help me.

"Maybe it has taken this now to make me realise you have to do the right things and look after yourself all the time.

"I had spoken to the manager during the week about everything and he said just to focus on the game.  But maybe it affected my performance in the first half.

"I didn't think I did very well.  I certainly didn't play like I know I can.  I was slow off the mark and was thinking about different things for some reason.

"People have talked about me in the same category as David Beckham and Michael Owen which is nice and I wouldn't have it any other way because they are the best players in the country, so I have to start behaving like them."