Gerrard rules wife out of World Cup till semifinals

London: Steven Gerrard could hardly have chosen a better way to impress Fabio Capello than by ruling his wife out of contention for the World Cup finals at least until the semifinal stage.

Considering Capello's dislike of the sort of WAG circus which descended on Baden-Baden during England's World Cup campaign four years ago, it was a masterstroke from the stand-in captain.

"I don't know if having the WAGs there affected our performance last time," said Gerrard ahead of yesterday's friendly against Egypt.

"I can't tell you that, but my wife won't be there this time, not unless we get to the semis or the final. She's got two kids who'll be in school and it's a long way away. If we get to the semis, she deserves to come and see me."

After the scandals which have hit his squad, Capello's message is clear: focus on football.

Last week, the Italian warned he would not tolerate more reports of bad behaviour off the pitch and, just to make sure his players understood, he told them again on Monday, outlining the players' responsibilities.

John Terry was stripped of the captaincy and Rio Ferdinand will succeed him if he can overcome a back injury.