England manager Roy Hodgson has confirmed that Wayne Rooney will be part of his Euro 2016 squad.
The England and Manchester United captain is currently sidelined with a knee ligament injury that he suffered during the 2-1 loss to Sunderland in the middle of February. The injury came at a bad time for the attacker, as he was going through his best spell of the season, scoring seven goals in ten games.
Rooney’s return to goalscoring form was a huge boon to Hodgson, who has placed so much importance on the ex-Evertonian, appointing him captain after the international retirement of Steven Gerrard.
When asked if he could say Rooney was a certainty to make Euro 2016 squad, Hodgson told talkSPORT: “Yes I can, because he is our captain, he is our most experienced player.”
“He has not missed one game in the last 10 qualifiers, in fact he has not missed one squad of the last eight squads, that takes in 16 games. He has never let us down.”
Hodgson’s trust in Rooney is well-placed, as despite a litany of critics, he is still capable of exactly the kind of sustained bursts of form that can propel teams forward during international tournaments.
Rooney’s form during December 2015 was poor, as he failed to score during the entire month. Yet in the first game of 2016, he scored a late winner for Manchester United with a spectacular backheel.
That goal began a run of five goals in eight league games (seven in 10 across all competitions) where Rooney led from the front as United went on a run of good form, including a superb away win at Anfield where the England star scored the only goal late on to seal a dramatic victory.
With a spot on the plane secured, Rooney will now be doing his utmost to return to fitness before the end of the season so he can lead his country in what will be his third European Championships.
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