Hodgson: "Rooney failed to live upto expectations"

KIEV, UKRAINE – JUNE 24: England manager, Roy Hodgson speaks with Wayne Rooney during the UEFA EURO 2012 quarter final match between England and Italy at The Olympic Stadium on June 24, 2012 in Kiev, Ukraine. (Photo by Claudio Villa/Getty Images)

England manager Roy Hodgson has admitted that his talismanic striker Wayne Rooney failed to live up to expectations in the game against Italy. Rooney, who was forced to sit out of the opening two fixtures at the tournament, made a goalscoring return against Ukraine. His performance against Italy in the quarterfinals, however, raised a few eyebrows, including Roy Hodgson’s. Upon returning to the country, Hodgson said:

“Rooney certainly tried very hard but he didn’t have his best game. I think he would admit that. That might be down to a number of factors but I don’t think fitness was a particular one. You can put a lot of things down to fitness but there was no reason for us to doubt his fitness. His running stats in the training sessions and the games were actually very good.

“But I think we put a lot of expectations on him. When he missed the first two games through suspension, we all believed that what we needed to do then was get to the third game and Wayne would win us the championships. That maybe was too much to ask of him. In the knockout stage, you really are hoping the player you know who can turn the game on its head and turn the game in your favour is flying and able to do so. That wasn’t the case for us and so it became more of a battling team performance.

“I believe had Pirlo played poorly against us, it might have affected the Italians’ showing.”

The newly appointed manager added:

“I think in all top international teams, you’re looking at one, two, possibly three individuals that everyone recognises as being exceptional, world-class talents. And when you get to the big stage, you’re hoping those players perform and show they’re world-class talents. Like a Maradona, who won Argentina a World Cup.”

Rooney’s fitness and sharpness, having been forced to sit out two games, has been questioned, but Hodgson insists that despite a great performance from Danny Welbeck and Andy Carroll, the Manchester United striker offered enough in training to suggest he was deserving of a starting berth.

“We haven’t noticed anything with his fitness levels. We’ve monitored his fitness levels and in training he has looked very fit. In the first game, he didn’t show any particular signs of lacking fitness and he played the 120 minutes against Italy. I think what you might be saying is you’re a bit disappointed with his performance and you maybe thought he could have played better.”