Gareth Southgate has said he is unafraid of dropping Wayne Rooney and showing the tough streak the England caretaker manager once had to employ at Middlesbrough where he recalled “making some really close friends redundant” after the club was relegated.
Southgate drew on those memories to highlight he would be willing, if necessary, to leave out Rooney at a time when England’s record scorer is struggling for form and has lost his place at Manchester United.
However, he also gave Rooney another vote of confidence after a section of the Wembley crowd briefly booed the England captain in Saturday’s 2-0 win against Malta, secured with goals by Daniel Sturridge and Dele Alli.
England camp
Southgate’s belief is that Rooney’s importance to the squad is not fully understood outside the England camp, and there was no clear indication of the player being removed from the side for tomorrow’s game in Slovenia.
“I think he commands that respect,” Southgate explained. “When he makes his observations and he speaks up, it’s clear that he talks with authority but also insight. ”
He opted to play Rooney alongside Jordan Henderson as the central midfielders in a 4-2-3-1 formation against Malta but now wants Eric Dier to return to the starting line-up. Dier was left out against Malta because he has had hamstring problems.
Rooney has not started any of United’s last three matches, but Southgate described himself as “very pleased” with the player’s performance against Malta. “I think at this moment in time that’s irrelevant,” Southgate said, in response to questions about Rooney’s reduced role at Old Trafford.
Southgate did say that “the longer a situation goes where you are not playing with your club, it becomes more difficult”, and he bristled when asked if he would dare remove a player of Rooney’s status.
“I’ve got to make decisions which are right for the team and, whenever you select a team for England, you’re going to leave out some players.
“You look at the bench [against Malta] and there are guys who are playing every week in the Premier League, so you have to be prepared to do that. That’s part and parcel of the job.”
