“This is the most decorated outfield player in England”. England will qualify for Russian Federation because their group is full of non-entities, but if they want to enter that tournament with a team that can get out of the group stages, then Allardyce needs to drop Wayne Rooney, and soon.
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Dier admits his team’s inability to kill Sunday’s game off earlier is a cause for concern, conceding that they will need to be more clinical if they are to have any chance of success in major tournaments. I wanted to be positive and tell them what the future is. He also said of Rooney that, “I think he should have retired after the Euros”.
“I will have a check on it tomorrow and see if it’s fully okay, but there were a few challenges that I felt could have earned him a yellow card but it didn’t come”.
With the referee checking his watch, Danny Rose sent a hopeful low ball into the area for Lallana, who jinked left past a defender and struck a low shot through the legs of goalkeeper Matus Kozacik for his first England goal in 27 games.
It is unlikely to be the last we hear about Rooney’s place in the team, or his apparent influence on Allardyce’s tactics.
Any England fans hoping for a courageous new dawn under Sam Allardyce after the debacle of Euro 2016 were left somewhat non-plussed in terms of the performance in their opening World Cup qualifier against Slovakia on Sunday, large parts of which were just as predictable and punchless as under his predecessor Roy Hodgson. “I am happy where I’m playing”.
“I don’t think he’s a striker anymore”, Shilton told the BBC.
Eight of the 11 players picked by Allardyce in Trnava started the shock 2-1 defeat to Iceland in the round of 16 stage in France, a result which cost previous manager Roy Hodgson his job.
“I haven’t asked what their biggest fear is”, he said. “It’s what grows you up as a player and that is what I have got to use to help me”. He read it very well, we won the game and dominated the game, outplaying the opposition.
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He has scored 246 goals in 524 appearances for United, three goals behind the record held for so long by Sir Bobby Charlton. “He did play a little deeper than I thought he’d play, but I was pleased with his performance”.
