Gerrard fears a Belarus wind-up

Belarus striker Vitaly Bulyga has already attempted to rile Wayne Rooney by claiming the Manchester United striker has "weaknesses" they can exploit, and Gerrard expects similarly underhand tactics during the game.

British teams have failed to keep their cool in Belarus before, with Craig Bellamy sent off for throwing a punch in Wales' 2-1 defeat there in 2000, while Scotland's Under-21s had two red-carded in a bad-tempered 3-2 loss three years ago.

Gerrard is determined that England will not fall into the same trap and will spell out to his team-mates the importance of retaining their composure against Bernd Stange's team.

Liverpool captain Gerrard told Standard Sport: "It is important not to react to provocation. These teams can 'play the game' with off-the-ball stuff.

"It is important to stay focused, stay together, and try to achieve what we are going to Belarus for, which is three points towards qualifying for the World Cup.

"There are a lot of young players in the squad, and it is up to the experienced players like me to make sure they are aware of the kind of things that go on.

"We know the job in hand, and we know what we will need to do to get the win."

With captain John Terry and left-back Ashley Cole both out injured, coach Fabio Capello will look even more to players like Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Rio Ferdinand to ensure England return from Minsk undefeated.

After three successive victories in Group Six, Capello and his players know a fourth win would put them in a real position of strength in their campaign to qualify for the finals in South Africain 2010.

Capello could stick with the 4-4-2 formation which brought about a second-half improvement in Saturday's 5-1 win over Kazakhstan at Wembley, which could mean Gerrard playing on the left if Gareth Barry keeps his place in the starting XI.

Gerrard added: "The manager has great options, so he can change personnel, tactics and team shape."