I will start Messi, drop Ronaldo and bench Kane: Rooney, ahead of the FIFA World Cup

England forward Wayne Rooney has said that given a choice between starting, benching and dropping Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Harry Kane, he would ‘start Messi, bench Kane and drop Ronaldo’.

Wayne Rooney went on to say that he would drop Ronaldo and start Lionel Messi if given a choice. | Photo Credit: AFP

England forward Wayne Rooney, in an pre-tournament interaction has said that given a choice between starting, benching and dropping Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Harry Kane, he would ‘start Messi, bench Kane and drop Ronaldo’.

This is the first time Rooney spoke on television after Ronaldo’s explosive interview to Piers Morgan, where he had castigated his former Manchester United teammates Gary Neville and Wayne Rooney.

While Rooney had criticised Ronaldo’s attitude after Man United’s game against Tottenham Hotspur where he left the dugout before full-time, which received a fiery response from the Portuguese, in his interview.

“I don’t know why he criticises me so badly... probably because he finished his career and I’m still playing at high level,” Ronaldo said in an interview with The Sun.

Rooney is England’s highest international goalscorer so far, with 53 goals. For the FIFA World Cup 2022, the former Manchester United forward is one of the three pundits on Sports18, alongside Robert Pires and Sol Campbell.

On the opening day of the pre-match show, Rooney was asked the unnerving question to pick and choose between Messi, Kane and Ronaldo.

After a grin, the 37-year-old replied that he would start the Argentine, bench the Tottenham Hotspur striker and drop his former teammate at the Old Trafford stadium, Cristiano Ronaldo.