JERMAINE JENAS is relishing his friendly rivalry with Kieron Dyer as the Newcastle United teammates fight over one place in the England side.

Sven-Goran Eriksson is expected to give either Jenas or Dyer the left-sided midfield role for next Saturday's Euro 2004 qualifier in Liechtenstein.

The England coach is understood to have been more impressed with Jenas than Dyer when the Magpies midfielders were each deployed for 45 minutes in that position during last month's friendly with Australia.

Jenas, 20, should be named in the England squad for a competitive international for the first time on Sunday, when Eriksson announces the players who will take on Liechtenstein and Turkey in a crucial double header.

But the former Nottingham Forest man insists he and Dyer are not letting their own international claims interfere with their St James' Park relationship.

Jenas said: "I know what's been said about this, but Kieron and I don't feel we're battling for the same place in the England team.

"We're good friends and we're in the same boat - like me, he would prefer to play in central midfield - and we're supporting each other all the way."

Jenas reckons his performance in Wednesday's defeat to Barcelona bolstered his international credentials in his penultimate game before the Liechtenstein clash.

Eriksson has been frustrated in his attempts to fill the problematic No 11 shirt, with Emile Heskey and Paul Scholes among a posse of players tried in that role.

Now, Jenas is hoping to win his second cap in eight days' time, even though he would rather play in central midfield for country as well as club.

Jenas said: "There's still a lot for me to learn, but I think I did all right against Barcelona.

"I'm a central midfielder for Newcastle and hopefully for England.

"But there's no better feeling than playing for your country.

"I'm like a lot of players in that I'd be prepared to play anywhere for England. The Australia game was a brilliant moment in my career and I'll never forget it.

"I wanted to let people know about me, and I wanted to show myself as much as anyone that I was ready and had the quality to play at that level.

"In a way, I'm surprised at how quickly I've got into the England team, but you can only get better if you train with world-class players like Kieron and Alan Shearer every day."

As Jenas focused on a possible England call-up, Shay Given last night wrote off Newcastle's title chances ahead of their final eight Premiership fixtures.

The Magpies trail leaders Arsenal by five points and goalkeeper Given insists the gap is insurmountable as the season draws to an exciting finale.

He said: "Winning the league would be compensation for going out of the Champions League!

But I can't see Arsenal losing, to be honest. I think it would have been better for us if Arsenal had stayed in the Champions League because that would have given them more games to play.

"But now they can totally focus on the League, and even though they've got the FA Cup I still think they've got too much for us to catch them.

"We've got to win every game and hope they slip up a couple of times.

"Blackburn's win over Arsenal does give us heart because they looked invincible for a while. And they lost to Valencia as well, so who knows?

"The players haven't really spoken about the title. Our main aim is to get back in the Champions League.

"I think we'll have a really good go at winning the title next year if our key players are fit for the whole season.

"We've got Jonathan Woodgate to come in as well, and he looks a really accomplished player and good for the future."

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