After leading Chelsea to their second consecutive English premier league champions last season, the inspirational leader of Stamford Bridge is almost certain, sooner or later, to become England's next captain.

    If he plays the World Cup finals as well as he did for his club, the captain's armband might be his soon after returning from Germany, even though some Britain's football big names think he should wear it during the five-week tournament.

    Former England captain Bryan Robson, now manager of West Brom, is one of them thinking Terry would be a much better choice than Beckham in Germany.

    "He leads by example, is an excellent organizer and has the presence that everyone in the team will respect. He also scores goals, a great bonus for a defender," Robson said.

    Just four years ago, Terry, now 25, was brawling in nightclubs and risked going to jail. And then he changed, believing he has the chance to become one of England's best footballers in history.

    Terry, made captain of Chelsea two seasons ago by then manager Claudio Ranieri, is a perfect leader. His personal qualities - reliability, honesty, and fortitude - complement his attributes on the pitch: bonkers bravery, faultless positioning and distribution, a commanding stature in the air, a capacity to remain injury-free, an ability to score crucial goals.

    The Germany World Cup is Terry's second major tournament for England after becoming the country's first-choice center back. England's hopes will depend on his good performance.

    "It's been very good for me at club level this season, over the last couple of years the players at Chelsea have grown in confidence," Terry said at England's training camp in Portugal. "I'm certainly bringing that into the England team now."

    "Jose Mourinho instills a winning mentality in you at Chelsea and we are bringing that into the England squad," Terry said. "We have won the title for the second year in a row and we're very proud of that. We have had a great season for Chelsea and we need to take into the England side and the World Cup."

    Terry made his mark at the 2004 European Championship in Portugal when Rio Ferdinand was suspended for missing a doping test. He has won 22 caps and is likely to play alongside Ferdinand at central defense in Germany.

    Ghana's Michael Essien, Terry's teammate at Chelsea, believed his club captain is good enough to inspire England to World Cup glory in Germany.

    Essien said: "John Terry is a rock. I've never seen a defender like him. He's a tough guy, scared of no one."

    There is every reason to believe that England's hopes depend heavily on him having a great World Cup. Enditem