Gerrard in England rallying cry

ENGLAND v SLOVENIA
Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth Date: 23 June Time: 1500 BST Coverage: Live on BBC1 and Radio 5 Live; live text commentary and in-depth analysis on BBC Sport website Full details of BBC World Cup coverage

Time to move on and focus on Slovenia - Gerrard

Captain Steven Gerrard has vowed that England will adopt a "do-or-die" mentality as they bid to avoid crashing out of the World Cup on Wednesday.

Fabio Capello's team, who have drawn their first two Group C games in South Africa, must beat Slovenia to guarantee a place in the last-16 knockout stage.

"It is a do-or-die situation," conceded Liverpool midfielder Gerrard, 30.

"It would be an absolute disaster for this group of players to go home after the group stages."

England have not failed to qualify for the knockout stages of a World Cup since 1958 but their ongoing participation in the 2010 tournament now hangs in the balance after two performances that its Premier League stars admit have not been good enough.

We want to make the nation proud and happy Steven Gerrard

A 1-1 draw in the opening match with the United States was followed by a 0-0 stalemate against Algeria last Friday.

Controversy has dogged the England camp since the final whistle of that drab encounter.

As he walked off the pitch, Wayne Rooney criticised some England fans for booing the team while Capello said deposed captain John Terry made a "big mistake" after giving a press conference in which he appeared to question the Italian's training and tactics.

Following their struggles on the pitch, Capello identified the fierce glare of the spotlight his players are under as a potential reason for their individual and collective below-par performances - a point that Gerrard recognises ahead of the crucial Slovenia match.

"The key is to try and live without fear" he stated.

"There is pressure and fear. But the fear of not winning drives you on. We've come here to stay in this tournament to the end. We need to perform, we need to improve on the last performance.

"You have to go on to the pitch and try and relax, be patient. The performance will come.

"We want to make the nation proud and happy and a good win can give the players more confidence."

England must win to potentially top the group, but if both they and the US - who face Algeria - draw their matches, Capello's side need to score two goals more than the Americans to stand a chance of qualification through the drawing of lots.

Slovenia - the current Group C leaders - will qualify if they draw against England and a place in the last 16 would be considered a breakthrough achievement for a country with a population of only two million people, compared to England's 52 million.

ALAN SHEARER ON ENGLAND It is better for players to express their feelings, as Terry did. I still believe they will qualify

"On paper, we're massive favourites," added Gerrard. "They're a small nation compared to us but every game in this World Cup, as has been proven, is difficult.

"We've stopped doing the things we're good at. We watched the game with Algeria in the team meeting, without anyone talking, and it was clear to see we weren't aggressive enough."

Matthew Upson will deputise for suspended centre-back Jamie Carragher, while Capello must decide whether to keep faith with striker Emile Heskey or bring in Tottenham's Peter Crouch or Jermain Defoe to partner Wayne Rooney.

He must also weigh up if he should revert to a 4-3-3 formation in place of the 4-4-2 used so far.

Slovenia coach Matjaz Kek has warned his players not to be taken in by England's poor World Cup form ahead of the Group C showdown.

"Playing against England is always a challenge," he said. "It is also filled with huge expectations but please do not believe that we feel better because England might not have played so well so far.

"We will play as we have been. We will try to do our best - we will try not to make mistakes."

Capello predicts Rooney will hit form

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