Wayne Rooney has claimed that England missed Harry Maguire in their disappointing 1-0 defeat to Iceland on Friday night. Maguire who has 63 caps, wasn’t included in Gareth Southgate’s final 26-man squad for Euro 2024 due to calf injury.
Wayne Rooney stated that England’s back line was “disjointed” at Wembley. He expressed his belief that Manchester United defender Maguire could have made a major difference if fit.
Speaking on Channel 4 Wayne Rooney said: “Tonight the back line were a little bit disjointed at times. And that’s through lack of experience. That’s something I’m sure Gareth and the coaches will be showing them. You have to get that right because we’re so excited by attacking players we’ve got. They have to be backed up by the back line and being aggressive.”
“I think tonight actually shows the importance of Harry Maguire to this England team. What a big loss he is to this squad.”
Maguire has previously received criticism for his performances especially at club level, but has often been hugely important player for Southgate. John Stones started alongside Marc Guehi against Iceland. But the Manchester City centre-back had to be substituted at halftime due to an injury scare. Ezri Konsa replaced him. England can also call upon Joe Gomez. There are concerns about Three Lions’ options at centre-back especially with Jarrad Branthwaite having also been left out of final squad.
Wayne Rooney’s Analysis and Cole’s Optimism for England’s Euro 2024 Prospects
Wayne Rooney also lamented the fact that England didn’t move ball quickly enough to find players such as Anthony Gordon. He said “England didn’t move ball quickly enough from side to side to get players like Anthony Gordon one-v-one enough. The result is not the most important thing tonight. It’s about players getting experience. They have to learn from tonight’s game.”
Despite defeat Wayne Rooney remained confident that England have chance of winning Euro 2024. He said, “It’s a very exciting squad. They’ve certainly got players and firepower. I hope the backline is strong. That’s my only concern. But I think we’ve got more than enough to go and take teams head on. If we do that we’ve got great chance.”
Meanwhile, Joe Cole backed England to perform significantly better. When the real action gets underway. Cole said: “I know there were a few boos after the game this team is used to giving us performances and wins. But go away, have a few days with your family. The tournament starts when you get on that plane.
There’s few things to brush up on but overall we’re ready. We’re going to be OK. It’s disappointing but you have to give players bit of leeway. They’ll be ready. This team has shown that in previous tournaments. So we have to trust them and believe in them.”