STEVEN GERRARD has never been one to shirk a challenge. So it was a typically forthright response when the Liverpool man was asked to assess England’s so far unblemished World Cup qualification campaign.

“In our last five performances in qualifying we have shown that we are a good team, a team that is together,” says Gerrard.

“Maybe 18 months ago this was a team that was playing as individuals but now we are more together and have a level of confidence back into our game.”

There, in a nutshell, is perhaps the main reason why England have successfully shrugged off the lingering disappointment of Steve McClaren’s tenure to blossom under present coach Fabio Capello.

Wednesday’s 2-1 triumph against Ukraine at Wembley maintained a 100% record in Group 6 and moved England a step nearer next year’s World Cup finals in South Africa.

But it was the manner of the victory that gave Gerrard greater reason for encouragement.

Having seen Peter Crouch’s opener equalised by Andriy Shevchenko with 15 minutes remaining, Capello’s men came again with Gerrard’s cushioned header allowing skipper John Terry to hook home the winner in the closing moments.

Put simply, England have rediscovered the winning habit in games that count; the devastating 3-2 home defeat to Croatia in November 2007, which cost England their place in Euro 2008 and McClaren his job, now a distant memory.

“The way we fought back was the pleasing thing for me,” says Gerrard. “18 months ago this side might have gone into our shell when we conceded an equaliser and just play out the final 20 minutes in fear.

“But we got a positive reaction to their goal and showed a lot of character to come back and score the winner and take the points.”

Gerrard adds: “The performance was okay in patches but we know we can improve. We were up against a very organised side in Ukraine and they made life difficult for us.

“We’ve got five wins out of five now and we couldn’t have done any better in terms of results. But we know our performances can get better.