Wayne Rooney will not be included in England’s starting line-up against the United States next week, Gareth Southgate has confirmed.
The former Three Lions captain has been called up for a one-off friendly at Wembley to celebrate his international career and raise awareness for the Wayne Rooney Foundation.
There has been plenty of debate around the decision to recall Rooney to the England squad, with some onlookers suggesting the 33-year-old’s inclusion is robbing more deserving players of game time.
Leicester City playmaker James Maddison is not in the 28-man squad, although Bournemouth’s Callum Wilson is in line to make his first senior England appearance.
Despite the controversy, Southgate says he is happy for Rooney to be involved.
“As the manager, my involvement was: ‘Am I happy for him to play a part in the game?’ Yes,” Southgate said, according to Sky Sports.
“I’m still able to look to the future in terms of the squad I was able to pick and the things I want to see.
“I’ve talked a lot to the players about the importance of the shirt, the history, we’ve brought former players back in to speak to the squad, to present shirts.
“All other players would respect Wayne’s contribution deserves the best possible send off.
“I understand that’s caused a lot of debate and conjecture but for me it’s a small way of appreciating what he’s given to the country.”
Whose idea was Wayne Rooney’s England recall?
England captain Harry Kane has revealed Southgate made the decision to recall Rooney.
Kane admitted he has been involved in discussions about celebrating the careers of acclaimed international players but didn’t expect Rooney’s send-off to come around so soon.
“We spoke previously about doing something for the players who have amazing milestones, amazing international careers – it was me, the gaffer and a couple of the players,” Kane said, according to the Guardian.
“I didn’t know it was going to be next week but I knew it was an idea that Gareth wanted to do.”
Rooney is England’s all-time leading goalscorer, finding the net 53 times in 119 appearances for his country. His 120th Three Lions cap will be his last.
The post Wayne Rooney won’t start for England v USA appeared first on Squawka News.
From Squawka NewsSquawka News https://ift.tt/2AVwvcj
No comments:
Post a Comment