Under-fire Wayne Rooney arrives in Switzerland
England boss Fabio Capello will assess Wayne Rooney’s state of mind before deciding whether or not to play the Manchester United forward in tomorrow night’s Euro 2012 qualifier against Switzerland in Basel.
Rooney has at been the centre of tabloid newspaper revelations about his private life all weekend, with stories alleging that he had slept with a prostitute while wife Coleen was pregnant with the couple’s first son, 10-month-old Kai.
With reports indicating that his marriage is hanging by a thread, Rooney may be understandably distracted in Basel, leading Capello to believe that picking him would be damaging to his team’s chances.
Nonetheless, Rooney did touch down in Switzerland with the rest of his team-mates earlier today, but with Capello scheduled to hold a news conference at 1600 GMT this afternoon, there is only likely to be one topic of discussion ahead of what is an important game for The Three Lions.
Rooney allegedly informed his wife of the newspaper stories by text message, and many are now putting the forward’s poor form at this summer’s World Cup down to this story weighing on the 24-year-old’s broad shoulders. He hasn’t scored a goal from open play for either club or country since March.
An improved display in Friday night’s 4-0 victory over Bulgaria – in which Rooney was involved in all four goals – had led to the belief that the forward’s form had taken on upturn in fortunes, only for the weekend’s allegations to threaten it once more. His team-mates, though, remain loyal.
"He's a top player,” said James Milner, the somewhat unfortunate England squad member ushered before the media yesterday. “He showed it on Friday and trained fully today.
“I'm sure he'll continue to do that. Things are always said in the newspapers. It is part and parcel of football and down to us to make sure the only thing that matters is what happens on the pitch.
“You have highs, you have lows, and it's down to us to make sure the only thing that matters is on the field, come together and make sure we get the result.”
Perhaps so, but with one of their number surely rattled by the weekend stories, tomorrow is sure to represent a test of wills for the England team and Capello, and whether or not the Italian picks Rooney is sure to dominate the pre-match thoughts and conversations.
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