Fergie fury at Rooney’s England role

Alex Ferguson has voiced his dismay at England’s handling of Wayne Rooney after the striker was left doubtful for Manchester United’s Premier League trip to Wolves on Saturday.

Rooney played for 86 minutes of England’s friendly win over Egypt in midweek, just three days after ending the League Cup final complaining of a twinge in his right knee and Ferguson fears he will have to do without his leading scorer this weekend.

“We’re going to have to assess Rooney because he played nearly a full game for England the other night which I was disappointed in,” Ferguson said.

“He played for almost an hour on Sunday on the same pitch and then he played for almost the full game on Wednesday. It’s far too much. So he’s a doubt.

“There were some changes made during the game and I thought Rooney would be one of them particularly as he went into the game with a small injury.”

With Chelsea engaged on FA Cup business, United can return to the top of the Premier League by beating struggling Wolves at Molineux on Saturday evening.

United’s defence for the match will be bolstered by the return of Rio Ferdinand, who has managed just one Premier League start since October but has recovered from his latest bout of back trouble.

A win on Saturday would send United two points clear at the top with nine games left to play. “Hopefully we can get the points we need and go top of the league as Chelsea are in the FA Cup,” said Ferguson.

“Going top of the league at this stage of the season is no bad thing.”