Gerrard ‘on a great high’ after sealing England’s World Cup place

England captain Steven Gerrard has said he is on ‘a great high’ after netting the goal that sealed the Three Lions’ place in next summer’s World Cup finals in Brazil.

Roy Hodgson’s men had to win their final qualifying tie against Poland to guarantee their spot in Rio.

They certainly delivered, as goals from Wayne Rooney and a late strike from Gerrard secured a 2-0 win and meant they ended their qualification campaign at the top of Group H.

And the England and Liverpool skipper insisted that while the feeling is hard to put into words, the team must remain grounded and keep improving to stand any chance of making an impact in the World Cup.

“It’s a great feeling, I’m on a great high at the moment,” Gerrard said.

“It’s difficult to put into words the feeling you get when you see the ball hit the back of the net.

“All the pressure you’ve been under over the past couple of years, the pressure to qualify, it’s done. It was a feeling of great satisfaction.

“But it’s important to stay grounded and humble.

“We’ve got to Rio and congratulations to everyone for all their hard work, but we’ve got to keep improving and moving forward because it’s going to be a big challenge for this team in Brazil.”

England ended their qualification campaign unbeaten, with six wins and four draws, and Gerrard was quick to praise the team’s efforts throughout the stage.

“It’s been journey of highs and lows,” the skipper added.

“We took a bit of criticism after a number of away results where we didn’t manage to win, but they were difficult games.

“We always knew having the two home games was going to be key and under the pressure we performed tremendously well.”