Rooney fumes at England dressing room – ‘it’s too soon’ | Football | Sport

Wayne Rooney believes England’s wild dressing room celebrations following their victory over Mexico have come “too soon”. The Three Lions squad were filmed leaping and dancing in the depths of the Azteca Stadium after their thrilling 3-2 World Cup last-16 triumph.

Manager Thomas Tuchel threw himself into the celebrations, though his elation briefly turned to alarm when it appeared John Stones had suffered a shoulder injury. However, the defender was merely play-acting and promptly started punching the air as Declan Rice roared with laughter beside him.

Over that footage, Rooney voiced his reservations, with the former England forward taking a different view to fellow BBC pundit Cesar Azpilicueta.

Rooney said on the BBC: “I’m a bit more old school. After you win anything… I know you’ve got to enjoy it, but I think it’s a bit too soon.”

Ex-Chelsea captain Azpilicueta had previously said: “As a player, when you have had these kinds of games against a host, this atmosphere, you have to enjoy it. Life is about balance, football is about balance, you have to enjoy it. Now they will recover and be ready for another game.”

England’s immediate post-match scenes were equally remarkable, with the entire squad assembling near their travelling fans to belt out a version of ‘Wonderwall’ by Oasis. Harry Kane was among those heartily singing along to the chants, which became apparent during his BBC interview shortly afterwards, with the England captain repeatedly losing his voice.

Rooney, part of the broadcaster’s punditry panel for the match, was left in fits of laughter at his faltering attempts to speak.

However, the jubilation soon gave way to anxiety as Jordan Henderson sustained a serious arm injury after tumbling over the advertising hoardings.

He has subsequently been ruled out for the rest of the tournament, while Reece James, Djed Spence and Jarell Quansah are all major doubts for the quarter-final clash against Norway.

Quansah is currently suspended for the fixture having received a red card against Mexico, though the FA may yet lodge an appeal against the ruling.

James and Spence, meanwhile, are both carrying injury concerns, with the latter reporting discomfort following the most recent victory, while the Chelsea defender has been sidelined for the past three matches with a hamstring problem.