Football news - Wayne Rooney’s England return: What has changed since his last cap?
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Updated 04/11/2018 at 15:40 GMT
Wayne Rooney is set to come out of international retirement for England's friendly against the United States later this month to mark his contribution to the national team, but what changed since his last cap?
Wayne Rooney is set to make his 120th and final England appearance next week
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Rooney, who is England and Manchester United's record goalscorer, will feature for Gareth Southgate's side in a one-off appearance on November 15.
The 33-year-old, now playing in Major League Soccer with DC United, has not played for England in almost two years, but the match at Wembley a week on Thursday is set to be his 120th senior appearance in an England shirt.
Ben Grounds reflects on how the landscape has changed for England since Rooney's last appearance.
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Rooney has not played for England since facing Scotland in November 2016
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What was England's team the last time Rooney played?
England team against Scotland, November 2016: Hart, Walker, Rose, Cahill, Stones; Dier, Henderson; Lallana, Sterling, Sturridge; Rooney.
Sub: Vardy for Sturridge.
The unused substitutes in the squad that day included Nathaniel Clyne, Phil Jagielka, Jack Wilshere, Andros Townsend, Theo Walcott and Ryan Bertrand.
In the two years since Rooney last wore the Three Lions shirt, Clyne has featured only once for England – four days later in the 2-2 draw with Spain while Wilshere and Walcott have returned to the international wilderness.
Jagielka has faded into the background at Everton and Andros Townsend and Ryan Bertrand have had far more pressing matters in helping their respective clubs stave off the threat of relegation.
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Adam Lallana scored the opener in England's 3-0 win over Scotland at Wembley
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Adam Lallana was named England’s player of the year for 2016 by sponsors Vauxhall after dominating the fan vote. His predecessor in winning the award was Rooney, who won the award in consecutive years to underline his importance to the team.
But the Liverpool playmaker has been plagued by injury in the last two seasons, while his club-mate Daniel Sturridge is only now flickering back into his 2013/14 form when given the opportunity under Jurgen Klopp.
Gary Cahill has lost his place in the Chelsea side with Maurizio Sarri preferring to use David Luiz and Antonio Rudiger as part of a four-man defence instead of a three, while Joe Hart does not feature in Gareth Southgate’s plans anymore.
Hart’s form has dipped for Burnley since he wasn’t called up to the last England squad, and you wonder what he makes of this one-off game for Rooney having accumulated 75 caps himself.
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Gareth Southgate was still interim manager when Rooney last played for England
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What was England’s team last time out against Spain?
England’s team against Spain, October 2018: Pickford; Trippier, Gomez, Maguire, Chilwell; Winks, Dier, Barkley; Sterling, Rashford, Kane.
Subs: Walker for Barkley, Alexander-Arnold for Trippier, Chalobah for Winks.
Included on the England bench last month were Mason Mount, Lewis Dunk, James Maddison, Jadon Sancho and Marcus Bettinelli.
Even when you consider that some of those call-ups came after injuries to some of Southgate's regulars it is remarkable how far England have evolved in the 24 months since Rooney was last involved.
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Sadon Sancho is the latest player earn an England cap since Rooney retired
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In November 2016, Sancho was lighting up the UEFA Youth League for Manchester City against Barcelona, but still some seven months off being named player of the tournament for England during the UEFA European Under-17 Championship.
James Maddison was playing against the likes of Partick Thistle for Aberdeen in his first season in Scotland having joined on-loan from former club Norwich City. .
Lewis Dunk has become a household name at Brighton, but both he and Marcus Bettinelli at Fulham were playing Championship football, while Mason Mount was breaking into Chelsea’s Under-23s team.
What has changed since Rooney last played for England?
Rooney deserves his moment back in the limelight after his departure from English football was somewhat glossed over during the raucous summer in Russia, but his return will highlight how far the national team has moved on.
In the same way that Gylfi Sigurdsson is now thriving at Everton in the Liverpudlian’s absence, England’s landmark victory in Seville last month demonstrated the devastating, free-flowing, fearless attacking triumvirate that now represents this new England.
Spain had been lauded for their start under Luis Enrique, but they couldn’t cope on their own patch with the interchange between Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford and Harry Kane.
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Marcus Rashford has been allowed to flourish for his country in Rooney's absence
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What is the general mood now surrounding England compared to in November 2016?
When Sturridge broke the deadlock against the Auld Enemy, Southgate dropped to one knee and pumped his fist, knowing then that the England job was his if he wanted it.
It marked a breakthrough in a significant hurdle he needed to overcome if he was to land the position on a full-time basis after replacing Sam Allardyce.
Fittingly, Rooney was involved in England’s final goal, with the striker flicking on a corner for Cahill to head in the third in a routine 3-0 win.
The scoreline was far more convincing than the performance, but England and Scotland have been going in different directions at some rate ever since.
It is saying something that Rooney would be Scotland’s talisman today were Berti Vogts’ to have got his way when he looked into whether the player had any Scottish relatives while a teenager at Everton.
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Southgate has brought a country that was apathetic towards international football together
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The result kept England top of their World Cup qualifying group. It far from represented a corner turned with Scottish football in a dreadful state even back then – but it was a start for Southgate.
Having recalled Rooney that day, the England manager has come full circle, and he can afford to now lavish the country’s all-time greatest goalscorer with a grand gesture back at the home of football.
England have gone through the gears under Southgate, who has gained the trust of supporters through the side’s run to the World Cup semi-finals as well as through his policy of promoting players who have excelled at age-group level.
Re-introducing Rooney will see the forging of yesteryear with everything Southgate has pieced together in his two years in charge, from grinding out a goalless draw in Ljubljana to beating one of Europe’s elite away from home.
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Rooney becomes England's record goalscorer against Switzerland in September 2015
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How will England fans receive the news of Rooney’s return?
Some may argue this represents a backwards step, with an international friendly used to celebrate the past rather than planning for the future.
The aberration of defeat to Iceland in France was still fresh in the mind when Rooney earned his 119th cap, but the joyless international breaks are now greeted with greater enthusiasm.
Facing his adopted country adds extra spice for Rooney, who remains as competitive as ever in the States, while the match will also raise money for the Wayne Rooney Foundation.
Rooney cited wanting to ‘focus on Everton’ when he bowed out from the international scene in August 2017, and after his low-key departure to America, England supporters will be grateful of the chance to give the all-time leading scorer a rip-roaring send-off.
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