Rooney wishes England best for rest of World Cup

Rooney spoke to 'Sky Sports' after completing a training session with his new team DC United in the USA, after he moved to the club last month, and wanted to lend his support to the current crop of England players.

The striker, who won 119 caps and played at 3 World Cups for the 'Three Lions', was one of the casualties of Gareth Southgate's attempts to reinvigorate the England side after a disappointing tournament at Euro 2016.

Despite the clear disappointment that the former Man Utd striker felt at the time at being left out of the England set up, he has sent Southgate and his team his best wishes for their upcoming World Cup semi-final against Croatia.

"For the players and Gareth, I just wish them good luck. They are making us all proud and hopefully they can go one step further and make the final." he said.

This World Cup tournament has had a remarkably different feel among England fans compared to the tournaments that Rooney attended during his international career, and the forward spoke of how pleased he was to see the 'football fever' that is sweeping the nation.

"It's great and the atmosphere back home looks brilliant. There is a real buzz about the team and hopefully we can get the win and go to the final."

Should they reach that stage of the competition, they would face a match against either France or Belgium in an attempt to lift the World Cup trophy for the first time in 52 years.