LONDON — Former captain Wayne Rooney was dropped from the England squad on Thursday, a day after his Manchester United side won the Europa League.
England manager Gareth Southgate wasn’t persuaded by Rooney’s increased playing time with United toward the end of the season, prompted mainly by others’ injuries and fixture congestion. More typical was the cameo appearance by the captain in the Europa final win over Ajax in Stockholm.
While Rooney is not expected to retire from internationals, it’s hard to see a way back for England’s record goal-scorer with 53 and its most capped outfield player with 119.
He hoped to end his England career at the World Cup in Russia next year, but in the pecking order of strikers he has fallen behind Marcus Rashford, Jermain Defoe, Harry Kane, and Jamie Vardy, as well as the injured Daniel Sturridge and Daniel Welbeck.
Rooney’s comeback hopes rest on his future club plans.
The 19-year-old Rashford, who started for United in the Europa final, will not now go to the European Under-21 Championship, while Kane, the Premier League scoring champion, is fit and available to Southgate for the first time after missing the manager’s first six games.
The 25-man England squad was picked for a World Cup qualifier away at Scotland on June 10, followed by a friendly against France in Paris three days later.
Other features included a recall for Stoke goalkeeper Jack Butland, 14 months after he broke his right ankle in a friendly against Germany, and a first call-up for Tottenham defender Kieran Trippier.
England:
Goalkeepers: Jack Butland (Stoke), Fraser Forster (Southampton), Joe Hart (Torino), Tom Heaton (Burnley)
Defenders: Ryan Bertrand (Southampton), Gary Cahill (Chelsea), Nathaniel Clyne (Liverpool), Aaron Cresswell (West Ham), Ben Gibson (Middlesbrough), Phil Jones (Manchester United), Chris Smalling (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City), Kieran Trippier (Tottenham), Kyle Walker (Tottenham)
Midfielders: Dele Alli (Tottenham), Eric Dier (Tottenham), Adam Lallana (Liverpool), Jesse Lingard (Manchester United), Jake Livermore (West Brom), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Arsenal), Raheem Sterling (Manchester City)
Forwards: Jermain Defoe (Sunderland), Harry Kane (Tottenham), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Jamie Vardy (Leicester)
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