• England

Rooney summons the spirit of Beckham

England captain Wayne Rooney has echoed the sentiments of former skipper David Beckham by saying he is prepared to play anywhere for the national side.

Rooney endured a miserable summer as Roy Hodgson's side were knocked out in the group stage of a World Cup for the first time since 1958. The striker's position came under much scrutiny, before Hodgson moved to make the striker his full-time captain - a decision fully endorsed by Beckham.

The 28-year-old has shaken off recent criticism - former England manager Glenn Hoddle got in on the act ahead of Monday's Euro 2016 qualifying opener in Switzerland, suggesting the nation needs the Rooney of old - by saying he is prepared to play anywhere his manager sees fit; similar to what Beckham voiced after he was stripped of the captaincy in 2009.

Hodgson vows for a 'top condition' England

Roy Hodgson is under pressure to deliver © Getty Images

• Roy Hodgson feels his England squad will be in top condition by the time Euro 2016 comes around.
• Hodgson and his side have come in for much criticism since the summer's early World Cup exit, while a tepid display against Norway on Wednesday did little to excite supporters.
• However, the England manager feels that, given they qualify, his side will have a real chance to do well in the tournament in France.
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"Obviously I feel like I am quite an adaptable player. I can play in a number of positions," Rooney said.

"Wherever Roy wants me to play, I am happy to play. It is as simple as that. I am not interested in what anyone else thinks. I am here to play for England. Roy's the manager, he picks the team. I'll play to the instructions the manager wants me to do.''

Reports ahead of the Switzerland match suggested Rooney will be deployed on the left wing in Basel despite the absence of Daniel Sturridge, who has been ruled out with a thigh injury.

New Arsenal signing Danny Welbeck, instead, could be chosen to lead the line after impressing as a second-half substitute in Wednesday's uninspiring 1-0 friendly win against Norway, in which Rooney scored the decisive penalty.

Rooney conceded England were "really bad" at the start of the second half and said that dampened the already subdued mood at a half-full Wembley.

The match attracted the lowest attendance - around 40,000 - for an international since the stadium opened in 2007, with the players' underwhelming display compounding post-World Cup negativity.

"That was always going to happen coming off the World Cup and how that went,'' Rooney said. "Every game now is a tough game and sometimes you've got to be happy with a victory, which we were. We were happy we got the win, which we set out to do.

"We are focused on [Monday's] game. We're ready for it. We've obviously had a few more days to prepare for this game than we did for the Norway game. We know this is a big game, the first game of the qualifying campaign.

"It is obviously not going to determine who is going to finish top of the group, second or whatever, but we know it is important to come away with a good result."

To do that, Rooney says England have to "learn to be more ruthless'' and to "see games off," such as Monday's clash at St Jakob-Park.

Opponents Switzerland are ranked ninth in the world and head into the match as bookmakers' favourites for the Group E opener.

"I think it is great that we've sold out all of our tickets and I am sure all the England fans will be right behind us,'' Rooney said.

"We know the Switzerland fans will be really up for the game, so it will be a great atmosphere. Hopefully we won't let the fans down and we can go and get a good result.''

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