London: Stand-in England manager Gareth Southgate hinted here Wednesday that he will ask captain Wayne Rooney to continue playing in midfield for his country.
Rooney, 30, has started Manchester United’s last three games on the bench amid an ongoing debate about the best place for him to play as his physical powers wane.
Both club manager Jose Mourinho and Sam Allardyce who was Southgate’s short-lived predecessor, had announced plans to deploy Rooney as a No. 10, although they then used him in more withdrawn midfield roles.
“I don’t want to go against Jose (Mourinho), but I think Wayne can play any number of different positions,” said Southgate, who has kept faith with Rooney as captain.
“The only thing I would say is I go back to one of the things we work on with the team: in and out of possession, tactical discipline, positional discipline. So whatever position you play, it is clear to the players that they understand that fully,” Southgate added.
Rooney, England’s record scorer (53 goals) and most-capped outfield player (116 caps), played in midfield under Roy Hodgson during England’s ill-fated Euro 2016 campaign.
Mourinho subsequently vowed Rooney would ‘never’ play for him in midfield, but he has featured there at times for United this season. Allardyce also expressed an intention to use Rooney further forward, but the player conspicuously took up deep-lying positions during last month’s 1-0 win in Slovakia.
Southgate conceded Rooney’s lack of playing time with United was ‘not ideal’ and refused to confirm if he will start Saturday’s World Cup qualifier at home to Malta. “I’m not prepared to give my team to the opposition, but I’m clear in my mind how that will play out,” he informed.
“But yes, if Rooney plays I would like him to continue playing in the same vein that he did for the Slovakia game. That gives more flexibility to the side.”
Agence France-Presse