Wayne Rooney remains as patriotic as ever and insists he would never turn his back on the England team.
Talismanic frontman will never turn his back on his country
Wayne Rooney remains as patriotic as ever and insists he would never consider turning his back on the England team.
The Manchester United striker came in for criticism over the summer as he failed to sparkle at the World Cup finals.
He was by no means the only one to fall under fire, though, with a lacklustre showing from the Three Lions leaving a nation frustrated and baying for blood.
Steven Gerrard, England's skipper in South Africa, admitted after the World Cup shambles that he gave strong consideration to walking away from the international set-up after growing disillusioned with life at that level.
But Rooney claims that quitting was never an option for him, as he is still determined to make his mark on football's biggest stage and help the success-starved Three Lions land a major trophy.
"I have never thought about quitting," he told the
Sunday Mirror.
"I am 24. Steven is a bit older than me but I think there's a couple of World Cups left in me yet.
"I'm very proud. For me, to play for England is the pinnacle of my career. In tournaments, we need to do better and I need to do better.
"I'm still young. I've still got time to put things right - and hopefully I'll do that."
Silverware
And the man who has won the UEFA Champions League and three Premier League titles, among numerous other accolades, with United, insisted: "I want to get as many caps as I can. But the most important thing is to try and get a piece of silverware with England, which would be the biggest achievement of my career if I managed to do so."
England have shown signs of encouragement during the early stages of Euro 2012 qualifying and Rooney believes Fabio Capello's decision to promote a number of talented youngsters into the senior fold will pay dividends in the long run.
"The manager has brought a few younger players into the team and you can see their enthusiasm," he added.
"In the last two games, we also seem to have got the shape right.
"I can't tell you personally what the difference is but I am just happy that we have started the qualifying campaign so well. We just need to forget about the World Cup. We're very excited.
"James Milner, Adam Johnson, who's done really well, and obviously Jack Wilshire and Kieron Gibbs.
"There's a few players with long international careers ahead of them and having them in the squad you can see the enthusiasm in them and it's brought a few of the older players back to life."
