Wayne Rooney believes that Manchester United starlet Mason Greenwood is best suited to being Harry Kane’s deputy for England.
After an impressive campaign in which he scored 17 goals in 34 appearances for United, Greenwood received his first senior England callup for the Nations League games against Iceland and Denmark.
Rooney feels that Greenwood is the ‘best finisher’ at United despite being just 18, and compared his progress to the impact that Michael Owen made when he was younger.
Rooney, the all-time top goalscorer for England and United, wrote in his column for The Times: ‘Greenwood made 40 appearances in Europe and the Premier League in 2019-20, compared with Foden’s 28, and he is a natural scorer, good with both feet, a taker of chances, calm in front of goal.
‘He is probably the best finisher at United already at the age of 18 and in goalscorers you can just see it from day one — Harry Kane and Michael Owen had the knack and it’s the same with Greenwood.’
Rooney added that he feels Greenwood is a superior option to the likes of Marcus Rahsford and Tammy Abraham.
He said: ‘As I’ve said before, I wasn’t a natural scorer.
‘That knack is rare and Gareth needs a proper deputy for Kane, someone he can slot in if Harry is injured or suspended.
‘For me, Marcus Rashford is not such a natural scorer and nor is Tammy Abraham. But Greenwood can be that player.’
Greenwood has featured for England at various youth levels, working his way up from the Under-15s to the Under-21s.
In addition to Kane, Rashford and Abraham, Danny Ings, who scored 25 goals for Southampton last season, is also in the latest England squad, so competition for places is fierce.
If Greenwood gets an opportunity to impress for England during the upcoming fixtures then he could help to persuade Gareth Southgate to persist with him ahead of Euro 2020 next summer.
The youngster will also hope to have another productive campaign with United as he looks to build upon the progress that he made last season.
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