Rooney 'desperate' to make return

By Phil McNulty
Chief football writer in Baden-Baden



Rooney joined in the warm-down after England's victory over Paraguay

England defender Rio Ferdinand has revealed Wayne Rooney's determination to make an impact on the World Cup.
Rooney, recovering from a broken foot, was restricted to a vigorous warm-down after the opening win against Paraguay.
But Sven-Goran Eriksson has not ruled out playing Rooney in the group games against Trinidad and Tobago and Sweden.
Ferdinand said: "He's in good spirits. He's doing well and hopefully he will be able to play a part in a few games. He's looking good in training."
England's fans gave Rooney a rapturous reception when his face flashed up on the giant screen, suspended from the roof during the game against Paraguay.

Wayne was desperate to get on to the pitch



Rio Ferdinand


Rooney then joined the other members of the squad for some work on the pitch after the final whistle before returning to join his victorious colleagues in the dressing room.
And Ferdinand revealed his 20-year-old Manchester United team-mate was in ebullient mood after the game.
He said: "I heard the chants. He was desperate to get on the pitch, it's the exuberance of being a young chap.
"If you ask any of the subs they would have been desperate to come on.
"The fans know. They love him and he's a great player."
Eriksson must also decide whether to keep faith with Michael Owen, after he was taken off in the 55th minute in their opening Group B win in Frankfurt.
Ferdinand says England team-mate Rooney is desperate to play in Germany


But Ferdinand has no doubts the injury-troubled Newcastle striker will deliver the goods in Germany.
He said: "Michael's all right. I thought he worked hard.
"He did a lot of running in the channels and I thought he caused problems for them.
"If he had a bit of luck with the run of the ball he would have had chances to score a goal but the pitch maybe didn't help him. "Michael will be fine. He's got nothing to prove when it comes to these big tournaments."


http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/foot...nd/5069582.stm