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| Wayne Rooney |
Rooney expected to start for England
Date: 18-06-2006 21:27
England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has suggested he may rest some players on yellow cards for their final Group B game against Sweden on Tuesday - when Wayne Rooney is expected to start.
With England already safely through to the Round of 16 after two wins from two games, Eriksson has hinted that a combination of Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Peter Crouch could miss the Sweden match.
They are all one booking away from suspension and while a second yellow card on Tuesday would leave them suspended for the second round, players on single yellows do not carry them forward from the first stage. "If we had to win to go through I would probably risk all three, but we don't need to do that," Eriksson said. “I don't want to leave all three out - maybe one or two.”
Rooney, who made his comeback after seven weeks out with a fractured metatarsal as a second-half substitute in the 2-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago, is an obvious candidate to come in for Crouch if the Liverpool striker is one of those players who do not feature. Eriksson said: "Together with our medical staff we discussed it and they think and I think he can play more than 45 minutes.
"And if it's more than 45 minutes then it is better he starts the game than coming on. He is very important for us because he's a fantastic player." The Swede admitted that England were "a different team" with Rooney playing and he added: "He has been telling me he's fit and ready for the last three weeks."
It is expected that Rooney and Michael Owen will start together up front. Rooney, like David Beckham, is hoping to become the first Englishman to score in three FIFA World Cup™ finals, though he has been struggling for form and fitness and was taken off in favour of Rooney against Trinidad and Tobago.
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