Manchester United captain
Wayne Rooney will return to skipper England against Scotland on Friday night, interim boss Gareth Southgate has confirmed.
The 31-year-old was dropped for the goalless draw with Slovenia last month after falling out of favour with club boss
Jose Mourinho .
Rooney has since returned to the fold under the Portuguese and started United’s last two games against Fenerbahce and Swansea City.
With Rooney set to win his 119th cap for the Three Lions, Southgate feels his skipper is now “in a better place” compared to a month ago.
“He’s confident and I think experience in a game like this is important, in a team that has a lot of energy and potential, but you also need a lot of experience,” he said.
“He’s in a better place than he was for the last get-together in terms of his sharpness, his confidence. There was no hesitation to be playing him.
“He’s playing well. He’s played well in his last couple of matches for Manchester United. When he’s in a rhythm of playing that helps.”
Rooney, England’s second most-capped player of all-time, played in each of the last two friendlies with Scotland.
Jordan Henderson, who captained England against Slovenia in place of Rooney, feels the 31-year-old’s brings invaluable experience to the squad.
“Wayne will speak to a lot of the players, with his experience,” he said.
“Not only for this game, but for a lot of the games Wayne uses his experience for the players very well, especially the younger lads that have not experienced as many games or as big a game as this is. So he’s a big part in trying to get the victory.”
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