HE might be four months short of his 22nd birthday, but Jermaine Jenas has revealed that he already harbours ambitions of captaining Newcastle United.

The England international underlined his value to the Magpies with the opening goal in Wednesday night's Carling Cup win over Norwich and, while Graeme Souness has chopped and changed his side since replacing Sir Bobby Robson, Jenas has played in every minute of his reign.

The former Nottingham Forest youngster has gradually emerged as one of Newcastle's most pivotal players, with a new-found maturity supplementing an all-round game that contains every aspect of the midfielder's art.

With Alan Shearer due to hang up his boots at the end of the season, the Magpies will be looking for a new skipper at the end of May.

Stephen Carr and Nicky Butt have been mooted as potential captains but, despite his tender years, Jenas believes his all-action display against Norwich proved he has all the credentials for the post.

"I would love to captain Newcastle," said the 21-year-old, who will line up against former team-mate Gary Speed when United travel to Bolton on Sunday. "It's in me.

"I captained Forest when I was 17, and the England Under-21s, and I thoroughly enjoyed the responsibility. If someone offered me the captaincy I would grab it with both hands.

"Steve Harper was the captain against Norwich. But with him being in goal, the responsibility was there for me in midfield.

"It was the first 90 minutes for a few of the lads who'd been injured so there was a certain responsibility on my shoulders to drive us forward. I felt I did that.

"I have gained a lot of experience in a short time. I'm still young and still learning but, in certain situations, I'm the most experienced player and sometimes I feel like the old hand."

Jenas has the ability to become the complete midfielder as his ability on the ball is supplemented by a willingness to work and break things up in the midfield engine room.

There is little he cannot do, and his versatility has drawn inevitable comparisons to Souness.

The United boss is widely acknowledged to have been one of the best midfielders ever to grace the domestic stage, and Jenas is already feeling the positive effects of working under him.

"With the manager having played as a central midfielder, he looks at my game and helps me in certain areas," said Jenas.

"Sometimes I play in more of a holding role, which is kind of new to me. When you're an attacking midfielder, it can sometimes be difficult to adapt to sitting back and watching everyone go forward but he's helped me in that area.

"He talks to me in training about my positional play and how to play that holding role, and obviously that's great for me because he was a brilliant player.

"The manager has said that I'm one of the first names on the team-sheet and that's a great boost."

Jenas has been tipped for great things ever since he burst on to the scene as a fresh-faced teenager at the City Ground.

But a series of below-par displays last season saw him criticised for the first time in his career and led to Sven Goran Eriksson leaving him out of the England squad for this summer's European Championships in Portugal.

That decision hurt but, instead of sulking, Jenas pledged to redouble his efforts this term in an attempt to play his way back into Eriksson's thoughts.

The midfielder received his rewards this month when he was awarded his first international start in England's World Cup qualifying win in Azerbaijan.

With the benefit of hindsight, Jenas admits that being snubbed this summer could have helped kick his career on to the next level.

"Watching the European Championships might have had a bit to do with it," he said. "It wasn't nice just sitting and watching it because I wanted to be there even if it was just being in the squad.

"I promised myself that I wouldn't allow that to happen again, but the only way to do that was to get my head down and work hard - that's what I've done.

"Last season I wasn't great in terms of being on the ball, but I always give 100 per cent and if things aren't going well, I keep doing what I know works.

"This time round, things are going well for me. I feel confident and we're getting results."

l Newcastle's fourth round Carling Cup tie against Chelsea at St James' Park will be televised live by Sky Sports. The game is on Wednesday November 10 with a 7.45pm kick off.

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