If there has been any player in the last two decades who has loved playing for the England shirt it has been David Beckham. His performances for the Three Lions have been well documented, especially the one-man show against Greece.
Wayne Rooney has probably taken up the mantle of talisman from Beckham for the England national team. His performances in the Euros were a little off the boil. But he is still England’s all-time top scorer.
His start to United’s season has been decent with a goal and a couple of assists to his name already. But he does not look his best yet and is still to hit top form. Rooney has been criticized by many the last couple of seasons for not playing at the level he is capable of.
Newcastle legend Alan Shearer believes the reason is fatigue and if Rooney wants to hit top form once again he should give up international football. Rooney plans to only quit international football after the 2018 World Cup but Shearer thinks he should think about his career.
“This is a Manchester United squad of real depth and power and Rooney needs to be producing at the highest level to make sure he stays in it. It is time for Rooney to be selfish and start thinking just about himself. And that, I really regret to say, means his retirement from international football.”
Shearer’s comments probably come from his own experience. He quit international football when he as 29 but played at the domestic level until he was 36. David Beckham is against this idea and believes it is an honor to play for your country.
On Instagram, he put up this post with a very strong message towards the likes of Shearer and other critics
Beckham himself was a very proud captain of the England squad and revealed in The Graham Norton Show that it was that aspect of his career which he misses the most. England would want to get off to a winning star under new manager Sam Allardyce