Tuesday 19 June 2012

Rooney ready to shoot

Wayne Rooney will come back to the England team having fulfilled his two-match suspension. But his comeback has given a series of selection predicament for Roy Hodgson, given that both Andy Carroll and Danny Welbeck offered persuasive performances.

England needs a draw to go through but a big win could see them top Group D and circumvent Spain, who won Group C with a stressed 1-0 victory over Croatia. 

England coach wants Wayne Rooney to deliver an inspiring performance like legendary Pele.

He said in an interview "If you look back through the years, if you take Pele for example, he was capable of producing his very best football when it really mattered to help Brazil win World Cups. We do need that greatness... let's hope that Wayne Rooney can start to do that for us on Tuesday night. Then, if we win, who knows?

"If Wayne can produce his best then he can help us keep going even further."

Theo Walcott the hero of the last match; could start the match despite leaving training on Sunday with a slight hamstring complaint. He could replace James Milner is Hodgson adopts 4-2-3-1 formation.

Meanwhile, the co-hosts are sweating over their star Andriy Shevchenko who continues to struggle with a knee injury.

In search of a must win victory, if Shevchenko is not fit, the Ukraine could choose between Devic and Milevskiy up front, with the former more of an attacking threat than the physical Milevskiy.

Ukraine coach said "England are among the favorites, so the pressure's on them."

"Our approach to this game is more relaxed. If the result is not good for us but we fight on the pitch until the last minute, that's not bad for us. We're building a new team, a young team. I think England will be very nervous."

Ukraine would like to start fast and England have to survive heavy early pressure, but they have the edge in terms of class and should secure the draw that they need to advance into last eight. 

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