LONDON : England\u2019s interim manager Gareth Southgate expressed bewilderment after captain Wayne Rooney was booed by his own supporters during his side\u2019s 2-0 World Cup qualifying victory over Malta.
\nRooney, his country\u2019s record goal-scorer and most-capped outfield player, played in a idfield holding role at Wembley on Sunday and produced a low-key display as England ground out a laboured win.
\nThere was a smattering of boos when his name was read out prior to kick-off and again after he hoisted a shot over the crossbar late in the game.
\n“I don\u2019t understand it,” said Southgate, who has replaced Sam Allardyce on an interim basis.
\n“That seems to be the landscape. I\u2019ve no idea how that\u2019s expected to help.
\n“I presented him with a cap in the week for being the record (outfield) cap-holder with his country. It\u2019s fascinating to get an insight into his world over the last 10 days.
\n“Every debate seems to focus on him. The onus on him is enormous. The criticism of him is, at times, unfair. He ploughs on and plays with pride and captains his country with pride.”
\nSouthgate pointed out that a number of England stalwarts had in recent times takn stick from the country\u2019s frustrated fans.
\n“I always look back to the (John) Terrys, the (Frank) Lampards, the Ashley Coles. In their time with England they took an enormous amount of criticism,” he said.
\n“And yet when you look at the number of caps they got, they were the guys that kept turning out and really putting themselves on the line.
\n“Some other players have not put themselves forward and withdrawn from squads when the going has got tough.
\n“Those guys desperately wanted to play for England again and again and again and put their neck on the block. I think Wayne falls into that category.”
\nJose Mourinho, Rooney\u2019s club manager at Manchester United, vowed on the eve of the season that the former Everton striker would “never” play for him in midfield.
\nRooney has, however, featured in midfield for United — when not on the bench — and Southgate was reluctant to wade into the debate about his position.
\n“Look, Jose will have his opinion on what\u2019s right for his team,” Southgate told his post-match press conference.
\n“I have to pick a team to get a result today. I don\u2019t see any point in getting drawn into that.”
\nSouthgate began his four-game tenure with victory courtesy of first-half goals from Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge and Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Dele Alli.
\nBoth goals were created by Jordan Henderson, the Liverpool skipper crossing for club-mate Sturridge to head in the opener and then laying the foundations for Alli\u2019s strike with a run to the edge of the box.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
LONDON : England\u2019s interim manager Gareth Southgate expressed bewilderment after captain Wayne Rooney was booed by his own supporters during his side\u2019s 2-0 World Cup qualifying victory over Malta. Rooney, his country\u2019s record goal-scorer and most-capped outfield player, played in a idfield holding role at Wembley on Sunday and produced a low-key display as England […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5114,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-5107","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n