England manager Roy Hodgson has refused to confirm if Wayne Rooney will start against Uruguay on Thursday.

Debate has raged about where Rooney will play throughout the World Cup, and the Manchester United striker was deployed in a wide left position against Italy last week.

Some have claimed that the United forward should be dropped, but Hodgson was tight-lipped in an interview with BBC Sport.

He said: "I'm not prepared to make any comments [about if Rooney will play or not]. Certainly since I've been England boss, I've refused to discuss team selection before speaking to the players.

"They don't know who is playing and Wayne Rooney doesn't know if he will start or not, or whether he will play in the same position.

"We've obviously been working towards our philosophy and we have the players that can help us [keep that philosophy]. We went out and matched [Italy] for very long periods but it's a defeat and they're never positive. But we'll move on and approach [the Uruguay] game in the same way."

Meanwhile, Manchester United legend Paul Scholes has urged Hodgson to play Rooney as a striker.

Written by
Paul Gorst