Capello sure England can maintain top form; Coach is confident rampant Three Lions have still: to reach their optimum.

FABIO Capello is not concerned that England might have peaked too early, writes SIMON STONE.

The Three Lions will bid to extend a 100% record in World Cup qualifying when they take on the Ukraine in Dnipropetrovsk today.

If Capello's men are triumphant, it would leave them just requiring to overcome Belarus at Wembley on Wednesday to complete a perfect campaign.

Already regarded as contenders in South Africa next year after a run which has seen them inflict two heavy defeats on Croatia and notch up a rare triumph over Germany in Berlin, such a record would see England installed as one of the favourites, behind Brazil and Spain.

It is not exactly an unusual situation at this time of a World Cup season. But, eight months before the 32-team jamboree gets under way, it is fraught with problems.

Yet Capello (pictured right) is convinced he can prise even more out of his players before the serious work begins.

"No, I am not concerned the team has peaked too early," said the Italian. "Confidence is really important and when you win, it gets even better. We are at a good level now. When you are at 90% it's harder to improve, but I think you must try to get better in every game."

It is one of the reasons Capello has ruled out any likelihood of experimentation in a game moved from Kiev due to renovation work taking place at the national stadium prior to Euro 2012.

The fixture may not have captured the imagination among the broadcasters, whose collective snub means it will only be available on the internet or in selected cinemas.

However, a healthy contingent of visiting supporters have made the trip via various routes given the lack of direct access - and Capello is determined to make it a worthwhile journey.

"This game will not be a friendly game," said Capello. "I spoke with the players on Wednesday and told them about some mistakes we have to resolve." And it is the individual win Capello stresses he is after, not a qualifying record.

"Ten wins in 10 games is not important," he said.

"I want to see a team that plays like it has done in the games that have gone before. I want to see the same spirit, the same speed and the same style. That is the important thing.

"Sometimes you find a team is stronger than you and you can lose, but the main thing is that you play." Capello has welcomed a couple of old faces back into the fold in Rio Ferdinand and David James.

Indeed, Ferdinand has just one competitive appearance to his name in the past 12 months, which ironically came against today's opponents in March.

However, the Manchester United centre-back insisted he will be fit and firing on all cylinders after 12 months of injury frustration. "In that period I've had a few injuries. Before that I don't think I'd ever been out for more than two or three weeks," said Ferdinand.

"I'd had 10-12 years of being virtually injury-free so it has been difficult to adjust to having to sit on the sidelines every now and again. It has been quite frustrating. Whether it is club or country, it is very disappointing to have to go and sit in the stands and watch the team when it is playing.

"Having said that, last season I started 45 games and, at any other club, that's a lot of games." The 30-year-old is certain to start, unlike James, who has had to watch as Robert Green laid down his marker over the past five games.

Andorra may not represent the most taxing challenge, but against Kazakhstan, Holland, Slovenia and Croatia, Green was called upon enough times to suggest he could yet usurp James as Capello's first choice, if not today then over the three games that remain before Capello names his preliminary squad.

"I have been following Robert Green," said Capello. "I saw a lot of his games with West Ham and when he has played with us, he has done well, with confidence and without fear. I have confidence in my keepers. We have had some problems before now, but with me they are always in good form." Capello is not the type who needs proof of the positive impact he has made over the past 18 months.

If he was looking for it though, he would have seen it by the make-up of the squad he sent on to the pitch at the Dnipro Arena last night to go through their final training sessions.

Whereas George Burley had to cope with 10 withdrawals from his Scotland squad, Capello has had just two - Joleon Lescott and Paul Robinson, who were pulled out on Tuesday after reporting for duty despite obvious fitness concerns. All the star names were there, including Wayne Rooney, whose wife Coleen is due to give birth in a fortnight. The Manchester United forward has stressed the importance of England's final two qualifiers. He said: "Obviously it's a difficult tournament and to win the World Cup you need to be at your best and you need a bit of luck as well.

"I think we're playing well, but I still think we need to improve if we are going to win the World Cup so that's what we're hoping to do in these games now."

While Rooney can start to look forward to playing in a second World Cup tournament, he has admitted the memories of the last one are still raw. He was sent off for stamping on Ricardo Carvalho as England were knocked out at the quarterfinal stage by Portugal.

But as the post-match furore largely centred on the role of Cristiano Ronaldo in the incident. The 23-year-old said: "I didn't really get any stick. Ronaldo took a lot of it and I was pleased about that.

"I still got it when I played for my club, but that is just normal. In that instance, I know I could have taken a lot more."

FRANK Lampard believes he has reaped the benefit of working under Italian managers with Chelsea and England.

The Chelsea and England midfielder worked under first Claudio Ranieri and now Carlo Ancelotti at Stamford Bridge and he feels Fabio Capello has helped to bring the best out of him for his country. Lampard said: "The Italian managers are very disciplined. They work very hard on the training field but they are all different personalities with different styles."

WEB COVERAGE MEDIA company Perform are streaming England's penultimate World Cup qualifier match live online.

The match will be shown on a pay-per-view basis via www.ukrainevengland.com with the price increasing to pounds 11.99 today.

CAPTION(S):

HITCH Only online subscribers can watch Rooney.