Eriksson must decide whether to take Rooney
Associated Press
LONDON (AP) - England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has to decide whether to risk naming an injured Wayne Rooney in England's World Cup squad.
The Manchester United striker broke a bone in his right foot during United's 3-0 loss at Chelsea on Saturday and club officials say he will be out of action for six weeks.
England's first World Cup game is against Paraguay on June 10, exactly six weeks after Rooney got injured. The 20-year-old forward may not be fit for that or other first-round group games against Trinidad & Tobago and Sweden, but Eriksson may take him to Germany in the hope England makes it to the next phase.
However, Eriksson did get some good news Sunday.
An X-ray revealed Rooney's regular striking partner Michael Owen did not aggravate his own foot injury playing for Newcastle on Saturday.
Owen had been in discomfort after a 30-minute appearance against Birmingham, his first game since breaking a foot bone Dec. 31. But Newcastle said a scan had shown no damage.
The Magpies issued a statement citing a specialist saying it was normal for a player to feel pain in the first couple of games back after an injury of this type.
Eriksson, who was at Saturday's Chelsea-Manchester United game, has yet to comment on Rooney's injury. The Swede is due to name a provisional 26-man squad May 8 and trim it to 23 for FIFA's May 15 deadline. Coaches can replace players injured after that but not those hurt before.
Bobby Robson, who led England to the World Cup semifinal in 1990, said Sunday that Rooney's absence would turn England from one of the favorites to an outsider.
"The news about Wayne is depressingly sad," Robson told BBC Radio 5. "You cannot replace Rooney. I don't think there's another player like him in the country or in Europe. He's a very special player and without him our chances are dim.
"People who win World Cups are top individuals. Who won the World Cup for Argentina in 1986? I'll tell you - it was Diego Maradona."
With Owen, Ledley King, John Terry, Sol Campbell, Ashley Cole and Wayne Bridge either injured or trying to come back from long-term absences from the game, England is having similar problems to those it had before the last World Cup.
Steven Gerrard, Gary Neville and Danny Murphy were all ruled out of the 2002 edition in South Korea and Japan after collecting injuries during the buildup, while captain David Beckham was evidently unfit even though he made the squad.
Like Rooney on Saturday, Beckham, Owen and Neville also damaged metatarsal bones. Rooney broke a metatarsal at the 2004 European Championship, while Gerrard has had the injury in the past, leading to speculation that modern boots don't give enough protection.
England in shock over Rooney injury
By Dominik Lauck (Monsters & Critics)
Apr 30, 2006, 12:35 GMT
London - England was in shock Sunday over a fractured foot injury of star striker Wayne Rooney which heavily endangers his participation at the World Cup and with it all possible title dreams.
'England holds its breath as talismanic Rooney joins World Cup casualty list,' said the front page headline of The Observer.
The Manchester United marksman Rooney has been ruled out for six weeks, this period ending on June 10 when England play their first match at the World Cup in Germany against Paraguay, with games against Sweden and Trinidad and Tobago to follow.
Rooney, 20, fractured the fourth metatarsal bone in his right foot during United's 3-0 defeat at Chelsea on Saturday.
The entire stadium held its breath when Rooney was taken off on a stretcher, with Chelsea's England player Joe Cole revealing later he thought 'Please, not Wayne' when the incident occurred.
England coach Sven Goran Eriksson now faces the difficult decision whether to nominate Rooney into his 23-player squad on May 15. Players who are injured by the time of the nomination cannot be replaced on the squad if they don't regain their fitness.
'Roo's out' said the Sunday Mirror headline while the News of the World simply asked football fans to 'Pray.'
The Observer summed up how big Rooney's loss will be.
'If Rooney cannot play in Germany, his absence will seriously diminish England's chances of capturing the World Cup for the first time in 40 years.
'Bookmakers have made them second favourites behind holders Brazil, but without the talismanic Rooney they would lack much of their creativity, attacking prowess and capacity to surprise opponents,' The Observer said.
Former England coach Bobby Robson, in an interview with the BBC, agreed.
'The news about Wayne is depressingly sad. You cannot replace Rooney. I don't think there's another player like him in the country or in Europe. He's a very special player and without him our chances are dim,' Robson said.
'People who win World Cups are top individuals. Who won the World Cup for Argentina in 1986? I'll tell you - it was Diego Maradona.'
Rooney fractured another metatarsal bone in the same foot at Euro 2004.
His fate now reminds many of that of team captain David Beckham ahead of the 2002 World Cup. Beckham broke his fifth metatarsal bone two months ahead of the tournament and later admitted he was not fit at all during the World Cup even though he could play.
The only good news for Eriksson on Sunday was that his other key striker, Michael Owen, has not re-aggravated a similar injury in his comeback match Saturday.
The Newcastle forward complained about pain after the game, but medical examinations revealed no damage and doctors said that some pain was quite possible in the first games.
Rooney injury leaves England fearing the worst
By Rex Gowar
Sun Apr 30, 2006 2:28 PM BST
LONDON, April 30 (Reuters) - England striker Wayne Rooney could miss England's first two World Cup matches with a foot fracture, a sports injury specialist said on Sunday.
However, fears that Rooney's striker partner Michael Owen might also be a serious doubt for the tournament starting in 40 days' time on June 9 were allayed.
"I'd doubt very much if Rooney makes the first game or even the second game," expert Roger Robertson told BBC Radio Five Live.
"I would say seven weeks. From five weeks onwards just build up the exercise and see how it goes."
Rooney broke a bone in his right foot late in Manchester United's 3-0 defeat at Chelsea and the club said he would be out for six weeks.
England face Paraguay on June 10, Trinidad & Tobago on June 15 and Sweden on June 20 in Group B at the World Cup in Germany.
Owen, 26, underwent tests on Sunday morning on the foot injury he suffered four months ago and they showed there was no damage after an uncomfortable comeback for Newcastle United on Saturday.
Media commentators said England defender John Terry would be out for 10 days after the Chelsea captain also suffered a foot injury in Saturday's title-decider at Stamford Bridge where his club were crowned champions for the second year in a row.
DIMINSHED CHANCES
The general consensus among pundits speaking to the British media on Sunday was that without Rooney, England's chances of World Cup victory were greatly reduced.
"It's depressingly sad. Without Rooney, I think we have gone from possible World Cup winners to outsiders," former England manager Bobby Robson told BBC radio.
"We can't replace Rooney, I don't think there's another player like him in the country... there's hardly another player like him in Europe," added Robson, who steered England to the 1990 World Cup semi-finals in Italy.
"The people who win World Cups are individuals, your top individuals."
Robson believes England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has a tough decision to make whether to include Rooney when he names his 23-man squad on May 15, FIFA's deadline.
"We have enough quality, I would hope, to beat the teams that we have to face in the group matches. What you need then is your top players for the quarter-finals, semi-finals and the final, that's when Rooney becomes crucial."
The anguish Rooney must be experiencing was revealed in a remark he made in an interview he gave The Observer last week which was published on Sunday.
"To see any player get injured and miss the World Cup...that would be horrible," Rooney said.
'NO ALTERNATIVE'
Last month, Eriksson was quoted as saying he would take Rooney even if he had fitness doubts.
"If Rooney has a small problem, would you still take him?" the Swede was asked.
"What alternative do you have?... If you have a centre-half who might not be ready you can take another one but can you find another Rooney?"
Rooney, who has a fracture in the fourth metatarsal of his right foot, suffered a crack in the fifth metatarsal in England's Euro 2004 quarter-final against Portugal when England were eliminated.
Owen broke the fifth metatarsal on New Year's Eve and required surgery. He said after coming on as a substitute against Birmingham City that he was not entirely comfortable.
England were missing injured midfielders Steven Gerrard and Danny Murphy and defender Gary Neville at the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea, where they reached the quarter-finals.
Neville and Murphy had both suffered metatarsal injuries while captain David Beckham travelled to Asia while recovering from a similar injury and admitted after England's elimination that he had not been fully fit.
