When the final whistle is blown on the friendly between England and Denmark on Wednesday night, Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard is likely to notice one particular opponent making a beeline towards him.

It will be a defender, but it won't be the familiar face of Daniel Agger, his club teammate. Instead it will be a centre-back with a keen interest in the fortunes of the Reds' talismanic No.8.

Danish centre-back and Lille player he may be, but Simon Kjaer is a passionate Liverpool fan and hails from a family of Kopites - who have handed the 24-year-old a mission at Wembley.

He explained: "For the first time in my career I have to go to another player and ask for his shirt - and that's a bit embarrassing, really.

"My father and the rest of my family are huge Liverpool supporters, and my father has literally forced me to ask for Steven Gerrard's jersey after the game.

"So I am a man with a mission - also after the game. I have never done that before, because normally you just exchange jerseys with the guy you play directly against.

"I'm pretty much down to earth with full focus on football and not easy to impress - a player and not a fan.

"But I must say that Steven Gerrard is a very special character and a player who deserves the highest respect from anyone in the world of football."