It's all about Rio Ferdinand in the newspapers today, and although that's the way the Manchester United defender usually likes it he might not be so happy that his suitability to lead England is the subject of debate.

Ferdinand was made England skipper in February when John Terry was stripped of the armband, but injury ruled him out of the World Cup and Steven Gerrard took over as leader.

The centre-back is set to play his first game for England since May against Montenegro at Wembley on Tuesday but many pundits think Gerrard should retain the captaincy. Writing in the Telegraph, Alan Hansen goes as far as to say it is time for Rio quit England altogether.

Since December 2008 he has been involved in just 44 of Manchester United's 105 games and that is an amazing statistic which tells its own story.

If you were a 25 year-old with that track record, you would be in trouble, but at Rio's age, I think it gives a clear message that he must now decide whether he wants to extend the longevity of his career with United or continue to play for England.

I don't think he can play for both and there is a real argument to say that he should contemplate following the likes of Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Alan Shearer by retiring from international football.

Having had such a terrible run with injuries, Rio's priority is to play for United and get back into the groove of performing on a consistent basis of uninterrupted football for at least three months.

If he is looking at his situation as a whole, Rio is such an important figure to United that he must get things right there first. After having so many injuries and missing so many games, England must now play second best to United if Rio wants to prolong his career.

However, writing in The Sun, Shaun Custis makes the case for Rio to be given back the armband.

After last month's Euro 2012 double success, Capello refused to say who would be captain for tomorrow's game against Montenegro at Wembley. He wanted to assess Ferdinand's form and fitness before committing himself.

Ferdinand, 31, believes he has answered those questions with his performances in United's last two matches - where his team kept clean sheets against Valencia and Sunderland.

The cultured centre-back has also been hugely impressive in England training, showing no signs so far of any injury troubles.

An England insider said: "Rio has done everything he can to show Capello he is back to his best. Of course he wants to be captain. It means a lot to him."

So Capello must today nail his colours to the mast - Ferdinand or Gerrard.