The Liverpool midfielder, who has so far missed 11 of the 14 internationals since first being called into the squad, was undergoing a fitness test on his recurring back-related problems today.

‘‘If he’s fit then he will play at least 45 minutes,’’ confirmed Eriksson, with Nicky Butt understood to be on standby.

While the friendly is merely a stepping-stone to the World Cup qualifier in Greece on June 6, the England coach revealed he had been surprised at how hungry his squad had been this week at the end of a long season.

‘‘They’re still hungry and working really hard. They seem very fit and have a lot of enthusiasm. It’s beautiful to see that,’’ said Eriksson.

‘‘It seems more like the beginning of the season than the end of it. I am a little bit surprised about that. Normally at the end of the season it is difficult to find the right spirit again.’’

With World Cup qualifying hopes, albeit probably through the play-offs, now revived and four English clubs in the closing stages of European competition, Eriksson believes the country’s reputation is being restored after the Euro 2000 flop.

‘‘Football is becoming better and better in this country. What the clubs have done in Europe is excellent,’’ he said. ‘‘Before, it was only Manchester United but now there are four or five teams who could play in a European final.

‘‘Are we winning back respect? Of course we are. Doing well in Europe, like the club sides are, always gives a lot of respect in other countries.

‘‘They talk about the England football team more now than they did some years ago, just like Spanish football. Let us hope they continue talking about us.

‘‘We can benefit from what those clubs are doing. At this moment, there are a lot of players from Manchester United, Liverpool, Leeds and Arsenal.’’

Eriksson’s starting line-up is, indeed, set to consist solely of players from those four clubs, even if the likes of Alan Smith, Joe Cole and Michael Carrick are likely to make their debuts as substitutes.

With David Seaman probably starting in goal, although Nigel Martyn or David James will also get a chance, Arsenal team-mate Ashley Cole should continue at left-back while Martin Keown returns to central defence.

‘‘They’ve trained very well and you can see how much experience they have,’’ said Eriksson after recalling Keown and Aston Villa’s Gareth Southgate to the squad as Sol Campbell and Gary Neville are injured.

With Leeds’ Rio Ferdinand alongside Keown, and Liverpool’s Jamie Carragher starting at right-back, the midfield and attack should consist entirely of players from Old Trafford and Anfield.

Robbie Fowler and Michael Owen are set to start up front, while Emile Heskey is given a chance to impress on the left flank in the absence of Steve McManaman and Nick Barmby.

David Beckham and Paul Scholes are midfield certainties, while Eriksson hopes that Gerrard will be fit despite having seen his specialist in France this week about his back-related problem.

‘‘I think it’s much better and during the past month he has played a lot of games, which is excellent,’’ added the Swede.

England are tonight definitely without Wes Brown, who has an Achilles injury, and Ray Parlour, who underwent a hand operation on Wednesday, against Mexico, who mirror the tactics of the Greeks.

Both could have recovered in time to face Greece though, with Eriksson still holding onto the belief that England can top their group ahead of Germany.

‘‘It’s better that Germany should drop points. Otherwise we could never win the group, even if we beat them,’’ he insisted.

Eriksson revealed he will almost certainly fast-track Bayern Munich midfielder Owen Hargreaves into the senior squad next season after his displays in the Champions League semi-final and final.

And in welcoming Kevin Keegan back into the game as he admitted the management ‘‘drug’’ was impossible to resist, Eriksson revealed he had been ‘‘stupid’’ to continue as Lazio boss after announcing he was joining England.