England manager Fabio Capello brushed off concerns about Wayne Rooney’s state of mind here Thursday after the star striker’s father was arrested in connection with an alleged betting scam.
Speaking on the eve of England’s crucial Euro 2012 qualifier against Montenegro, Capello said Rooney was “relaxed and calm” following news of the corruption scandal which has embroiled his father and another relative.
“I spoke to him just five minutes ago,” Capello told a press conference. “I found him relaxed and calm. There is no problem for the game, he will play tomorrow against Montenegro. He told me there are no problems.” Rooney’s father and eight other people, reportedly including the Manchester United star’s uncle Richie, were detained in a series of raids earlier Thursday by police and gambling authorities.
The investigation is believed to centre around an incident in a Scottish Premier League match last year in which Motherwell midfielder Steve Jennings, who was also arrested Thursday, was sent off.
England captain John Terry — who has also had members of his family placed under media scrutiny in the past — meanwhile backed Rooney to put the allegations out of his mind.
“Wayne is focused on the game tomorrow,” Terry said. “We all realise the importance of that. It’s important for him to go out there and play his football, which he loves doing. He’ll always be fully focused on the pitch.
“When you’re on the pitch and the training pitch you can switch off from anything in life. Tomorrow’s game is the most important thing, we all appreciate that.”
England need only a point against Montenegro on Friday to clinch first place in Group G and assure themselves of qualification for next year’s finals in Poland and Ukraine.
Capello stressed, however, that he expected his team to play for a win.
“It would be a big mistake if we were to play for a draw. We need to play to win. I think the players understand the need to play in the same style as always when we’ve played away from England.
“I’ve spoken a lot about this and think they understand what I said.”
Capello meanwhile reported all 24 members of England’s squad were fit and available, but declined to elaborate on his likely line-up.
However, the Italian refused to quash speculation that he may hand a start to Danny Welbeck, pairing the in-form Manchester United youngster with Rooney in attack.
“I need to sleep tonight and will decide tomorrow morning about the forward to play with Rooney and about Welbeck. I need to choose,” said Capello, whose other big decision is the make-up of his back four, where Manchester United’s Phil Jones could partner John Terry in central defence.
Capello must also decide who will slot in at right back, with Phil Jagielka or Tottenham youngster Kyle Walker in the frame to fill in for the injured Chris Smalling.
They are the current leading soccer tipsters in this month competition. See also tipsters rankings.
![]() |
josha5330
posts a In-Play Double Chance tip on Feyenoord vs NEC just now |
![]() |
hadiejac
posts a In-Play Over / Under tip on Manauara vs Princesa Solimões just now |
![]() |
hadiejac
posts a In-Play Double Chance tip on Lyra-Lierse Berlaar vs Spouwen-Mopertingen 1 minute ago |
![]() |
hadiejac
posts a In-Play Half Time Result tip on Lyra-Lierse Berlaar vs Spouwen-Mopertingen 1 minute ago |
![]() |
hadiejac
posts a In-Play Over/Under - 1st Half tip on Lyra-Lierse Berlaar vs Spouwen-Mopertingen 1 minute ago |
![]() |
yasin1634
posts a In-Play Over / Under tip on Teutonia Hamburg vs Holstein Kiel II 4 minutes ago |
![]() |
blanko12
posts a 1X2 tip on Olympique Marseille vs Paris Saint Germain 5 minutes ago |
![]() |
blanko12
posts a 1X2 tip on Olympique Marseille vs Paris Saint Germain 5 minutes ago |
![]() |
hadiejac
posts a In-Play 1X2 tip on Al Ahly vs Real Madrid 6 minutes ago |
![]() |
hadiejac
posts a In-Play 1X2 tip on SV Unter-Flockenbach vs Weinheim 6 minutes ago |
Upcoming football matches with excellent head to head records over their opponents.
|
Sign in to view more football matches.
Football clubs who play better for their home games H2H.
|
Sign in to view more football matches.
Football clubs that play well for their away games.
|
Sign in to view more football matches.
Motivated teams after winning five matches in a row or they have maintained a ten-match unbeaten run. The bookmakers label them as favourites for a reason.
Teams in crisis after five consecutive defeats or they did not win their last ten football matches. You should avoid betting on these underdogs.
Teams having a draw in the last five matches.
Teams that have won all their home matches.
|
Sign in to view more football teams.
Teams that have not lost at home matches.
|
Sign in to view more football teams.
Teams that have not won at away matches.
|
Sign in to view more football teams.
Hi everyone, it's with super great pleasure to be part of SOCCERPUNTER betting platform , we get to learn and polish our betting skills as football lovers from all over the globe ?, we just got to watch the world cup out in Qatar , but I feel like SOCCERPUNTER is the World cup as well because we to get to compete against each other from different countries and it's very nice , we get to make friends as well. Thank you to the SOCCERPUNTER team as a whole for this such a good platform.
Best Regards
Vuyo
This tipsters ranking is based on single picks excluding doubles and multi accumulators. For the full ranking click here.
Tipsters with consecutive winnings in their recent predictions.
Tipsters whom have lost a few matches in a row. Bad luck you call it.
Soccerpunter is a magnificent site that make me to challenge my talent without fear and also make me to improve with my forecast.
From as little as $1 per soccer tip.
|
According to our computer algorithms, match fixing might occur to these football matches with highly unusual odds movement prior to kick-off.
Sign in to view the potential fixed matches.
Arbitrage is an effective way to make guaranteed profits without losing your money.
Analyze soccer matches, inclusive of past results, head to head stats, today match fixtures, live soccer odds, players and team form.
Check the latest and fastest live score results for all football matches. Know who are the goalscorers, yellow card and red card offenders.
Read up these useful tips for soccer betting.
Get the listings of soccer leagues and competitions for each region, including past seasons results and football statistics.
Want to bet on a match today? Check out the list of today match fixtures.
Read MoreGet the match results for all the soccer matches around the globe. Inclusive of half-time, full-time results.
Read MoreAre you an expert in soccer betting? Join SoccerPunter Tipsters competition to challenge against the top football tipsters and win prizes!
Read MoreCopyright © 2002-2020 SoccerPunter Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved.
Be the first to comment: