STAY WHERE ROO ARE

GARETH SOUTHGATE last night warned Wayne Rooney he can’t go walkabout again for England.

The interim Three Lions boss showed a steely side when he laid down the law for Rooney, who he has retained as international skipper.

Axed Sam Allardyce caused shockwaves after his only game as England manager – the 1-0 World Cup qualifying win in Slovakia last month – when he revealed Rooney decided to play in midfield, despite being picked for a more advanced role.

“Sometimes he played a little deep but I’m not going to stop Wayne if he thinks that’s the right position to go to,” Allardyce said at the time.

Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho has used Rooney further forward this season, despite his 30-year-old captain wanting to play in a more withdrawn central role.

Southgate, who has his first game as England manager on Saturday for the World Cup qualifying visit of Malta, said: “I don’t want to go against Jose but I think Wayne can play any number of positions.

“One of the things we work on with the team is, in and out of possession, tactical discipline and positional discipline. So whatever position you play it is clear to the players that they understand that fully.”

Spoken

Southgate travelled to Manchester on Friday for a meeting with Rooney, having earlier spoken to him to confirm he was still his captain.

England’s 53-goal record scorer has had a difficult season, netting just once in 11 appearances.

He was axed by Mourinho for the visit of Leicester 10 days ago, and Southgate admitted it’s better if players are starting for their clubs.

“We are always looking at what’s our best team,” he said. “If they aren’t playing, okay it’s not ideal. However, is that player still in your best team and is he still one of your high potential players moving forward?

“The decision with Wayne is who is the best leader for this moment and there’s no reason to change that.

“It’s clear having talked to everyone who has been involved and I’ve witnessed it first hand.”

Pressed on whether Rooney (right) will start against Malta, Southgate all but confirmed he would when he said: “I’m not prepared to give my team to the opposition but I’m clear in my mind how that will play out.”

In the wake of disgraced Allardyce’s departure as England boss, Southgate dropped a broad hint there was much about the game he found distasteful.

But he refused to go into details.