Gareth Southgate Says Wayne Rooney Is Getting His Form Back

 

Gareth Southgate believes Wayne Rooney is coming back into form and Friday's big match against Scotland at Wembley will be perfect for the England skipper.

Southgate, who could land the job full-time if things go right in his third World Cup qualifier, has confirmed Rooney will start the match after being dropped for the trip to Slovenia last month. After the Manchester United forward impressed on his Premier League return against Swansea last weekend, Southgate is insistent that Rooney will play well.

He said “He doesn't have anything to prove to me. He is a big-game player with big-match experience and I think a night like tomorrow is perfect for him. The whole basis of our conversation around the Slovenia game wasn't about my belief in him as a player. I made a decision that I thought was right for that game. Part of being a top professional for years is that you have to grind the difficult moments out. There's matches and periods where you know you are not at your best and they're games you have to grind out and play your part for the team. And then there's other moments where you start to get into a flow and everything is happening more naturally. To me, he looks like he is just heading into that period, which is great for us. He wasn't in a flow of playing (before Slovenia) but he has had more matches since. I don't know if something changed in the Swansea game. He had two 90-minutes last week, scored and had two assists. To my mind, even in his training, he looks freer in his mind and I think that is the key to people being able to perform.”