The former Manchester United player Rooney shared his top contenders for the EURO 2024.
The European Championship has kicked off in an amazing fashion as Germany went full throttle against 10-men Scotland winning 5-1 with goals from Witz, Musiala, and Havertz in the first half with second-half substitutes Fullkrug and Can sealing the deal for the hosts. However, the predictions are still ongoing with Plymouth Argyle manager joining the list, lately.
Rooney shared his opinion on Friday, expressing concerns about England’s youth, while still considering them among the favourites to lift the title
Spain, Italy, and Croatia start their campaign on Saturday, ahead of Gareth Southgate’s England who kick-started their Euro 2024 journey against Serbia on Sunday.
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The expectations are sky-high for the Three Lions even after having disappointing runs at the last three major tournaments.
Rooney has always been a keen observer of international football, sharing his top three teams who he believes have the best chance of getting their hands on the trophy.
“For me, three teams stand above the rest as favourites at Euro 2024,” he said.
“They are France, Portugal, and England. It’s a huge tournament for Gareth Southgate and his senior players, and Gareth is right to say that the job is all about winning now.”
Southgate’s first tournament in charge was the 2018 World Cup in which England had a surprising run to the semi-finals eventually losing to runners-up Croatia.
Next, the Three Lions went one better at Euro 2020, reaching the final at Wembley but suffered a heartbreaking penalty shoot-out defeat to reigning European champions Italy.
England’s last World Cup in Qatar also fell short under the hands of France in the quarter-finals leaving their quest to win a first major trophy since 1966 still in shackles.
According to Rooney, despite all these failures to win any silverware for 58 years, England is still one of the three standout teams at Euro 2024.
‘It’s a huge tournament for Gareth Southgate and his senior players, and Gareth is right to say that the job is all about winning now.’
Southgate decision to take out England regulars Marcus Rashford and Jordan Henderson to Germany, while also ruling out Harry Maguire due to injury leaves the upcoming results to speak for itself.
Rooney added ‘I worry about lack of experience,’ and ‘The squad is not as good as the one that came so close at Euro 2020’.
‘It has a lot of really good individual players but is not as balanced in terms of the mix between senior guys and those new to the international scene.
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