PLAY HIM DEEPER OR DROP HIM: THERE'S JUST NO PLACE FOR ROONEY IN THIS ENGLAND ATTACK

The inclusion of the Manchester United man in a central attacking midfield position between Harry Kane and Jamie Vardy left the England front line looking somewhat disjointed

There have been a number of questions raised as to England’s favoured attacking formation over recent times, with many wanting to know how Roy Hodgson might find space for Harry Kane, Jamie Vardy and Wayne Rooney in his starting XI.

Against Portugal at Wembley on Thursday the trio stepped onto the field together for the first time for the Three Lions, but in truth the fractured front line was the biggest concern to come from the underwhelming 1-0 win and Hodgson now boards the plane to France for the European Championship no closer to finding an answer to his quandary.

The knee injury which kept Rooney out for six weeks in the spring coincided with a period which saw Vardy and Kane increase their claims for starting shirts, but the first attempt to include the national skipper in the first-choice forward line was a complete and utter failure against 10-man Portugal.

While the team news was greeted with a belief that Rooney would play at the point of a midfield diamond, the Manchester United captain actually spent much of his time in-between Kane and Vardy in the attacking line. The decision to have the two in-form strikers split around 20 to 30 yards apart on either side of the attack for the majority of the game to make way for Rooney was baffling to say the least.

Rooney did occasionally drop deeper to attempt to influence the play more, but even then there was little indication that Kane and Vardy had been encouraged to make their presence felt closer to goal. The Tottenham man even found himself assigned to the taking of wide free-kicks and corners rather than getting on the end of them.

When Vardy was eventually replaced by Raheem Sterling in the 66th minute it was clearly more a reflection on Hodgson’s own choices in attack rather than the Leicester striker’s display itself. Vardy is no more a left-sided attacker than Kane is a set-piece king.

Almost immediately afterwards, England looked more enterprising with Dele Alli and Jack Wilshere taking up prominent positions. The lack of a leading role for the Tottenham midfielder before the substitutions began was yet another reason why the starting shape had not worked.

Chris Smalling's late header may have won them the game but England should have done so much more to test Portugal, especially after Bruno Alves was sent off late in the first half for a stunningly reckless high boot which caught Kane around the side of the head as he went marauding down the right-hand side.

And the primary reason was Hodgson’s decision to shoe-horn his captain into a position which suited the player himself more than the team. The desire to include a man with 111 caps and 52 goals to his name is understandable, but it surely cannot be done to nullify a striking duo who hold the key to England’s success at the Euros this month.

Rooney should be playing on the left of midfield, with Alli more prominent, and Vardy and Kane working in tandem rather than in isolation. Either that or the captain and talisman should be left out, and there will be games during the finals for which that may well be the best option available to the England head coach.

If this is the only way Hodgson believes he can fit Rooney into his starting XI, then he would be better off not picking him at all.

Goal.

BENZEMA: DESCHAMPS HAS BOWED TO RACISTS WITH EURO 2016 SELECTIONS

The Real Madrid star was left out of the competition along with Hatem Ben Arfa, and he echoed Eric Cantona's accusations of discrimination in the squad decisions

France striker Karim Benzema has accused coach Didier Deschamps of bowing to pressure from a racist political party in the nation.

The Real Madrid star was left out of the hosts' Euro 2016 squad, as the French Football Federation cited his need "to work towards unity" pending the outcome of a legal investigation into an alleged plot to blackmail fellow international Mathieu Valbuena, which had seen him suspended from international duty in December.

Eric Cantona had suggested Benzema, and Hatem Ben Arfa, had been left out of the squad due to their African heritage.

Benzema, 28, said he felt coach Deschamps may have listened to political powers in his squad selection.

"He has bowed to the pressure of a racist part of France," he told Marca.

"He has to know that in France the extremist party reached the second round in the last two elections.

"I do not know, therefore, whether it is a decision only for Didier because I've gotten along with him, with the president, everyone."

Benzema, who scored 28 goals for his club this season, is still open to playing for France again.

He said there was no reason for him to be left out, given his performances for the Champions League winners this campaign.

"In sporting terms, I do not understand why," Benzema said.

"At the judicial level, I have not been judged. I am not guilty, so we have to wait to see what the justice says.

"I like football and to play with my team."

Goal.

MOURINHO VISITS MAN UTD'S CARRINGTON TRAINING GROUND FOR FIRST TIME

The Portuguese manager was shown around the Carrington facilities and even stayed for lunch in the club canteen, as he prepares to replace Louis van Gaal for the coming season

Jose Mourinho made his first of what will be many trips to Manchester United's training ground on Monday, as he gears up to take the reins at the club. 

The former Chelsea and Real Madrid boss was spotted at Carrington making his first visit to the Red Devils' facilities, after agreeing to succeed Louis van Gaal last week. 

Goal understands Mourinho spent a total of four hours at the site, accompanied by United transfer supremo Edward Woodward, agent Jorge Mendes and other club staff. 

The Portuguese manager was shown around the Carrington facilities and even stayed for lunch in the club canteen, as he prepares to replace Louis van Gaal for the coming season

Jose Mourinho made his first of what will be many trips to Manchester United's training ground on Monday, as he gears up to take the reins at the club. 

The former Chelsea and Real Madrid boss was spotted at Carrington making his first visit to the Red Devils' facilities, after agreeing to succeed Louis van Gaal last week. 

Goal understands Mourinho spent a total of four hours at the site, accompanied by United transfer supremo Edward Woodward, agent Jorge Mendes and other club staff. 

The visit included a meeting with Woodward in what will be Mourinho's new office at Carrington, which lasted one hour. 

Among Mourinho's other tasks at the ground was an assessment of the club's training pitch and gym facilities, an area that Van Gaal was notoriously unhappy with upon his arrival in 2014.

He also stayed for a chicken lunch in the Carrington canteen, after a chat with head chef Mike. 

Goal.

RUMORS: England's big five clubs in talks over leaving Champions League

The promise of a guaranteed windfall and continental football on a yearly basis has attracted the attention of club directors, who reportedly met with Stephen Ross on Tuesday.

Representatives of five of the Premier League's most powerful clubs have met to discuss the possibility of breaking away from the Champions League, according to The Sun.

Manchester United's executive vice chairman Ed Woodward, Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck (below), Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis, Manchester City’s chief executive Ferran Soriano and Liverpool’s Ian Ayre were seen leaving London's Dorchester Hotel.

And the newspaper reports that the five were in talks with Miami-based businessman Stephen Ross over forming a European Super League, made up of the continent's elite clubs.

The proposal, if successful, would mean the end of the Champions League, while the new competition would limit the possibility of big clubs missing out due to poor domestic performance, as was the case for United last season and most likely Chelsea and Liverpool in 2016-17.

Foot injury could rule Toure out of Liverpool clash

Manchester City may be without influential midfielder Yaya Toure for its trip to Liverpool, but Raheem Sterling will start.

Yaya Toure could sit out Manchester City's Premier League meeting with Liverpool on Wednesday due to a foot injury.
Toure scored the winning spot kick as City overcame Liverpool 3-1 in a penalty shootout to claim the League Cup trophy at Wembley on Sunday.
However, the Ivorian may be forced to watch from the sidelines as the pair go head to head once again at Anfield on Wednesday.
"Yaya has a problem – a kick on his right foot. We'll see tomorrow if he can play or not," City coach Manuel Pellegrini said.
The Chilean is unsure how he will set his team out on Wednesday, but insisted that Raheem Sterling will feature from the start. The former Liverpool forward was booed by Reds supporters during Sunday's final and missed two great chances to score.
However, Pellegrini is adamant he has an important role to play in the team.
"I don't know what the starting XI will be. One player I'm sure will start is Raheem Sterling," he said. "He's a young man, a young player starting his career, but he knows how to deal with pressure. He'll receive the same treatment tomorrow as he did at the weekend, but I'm sure he can play without a problem, and he'll be a very important player, as he was in the last game. I don't have any doubts about him, it's important for him to play under pressure, that's what big players do.
"I have 100 per cent trust in Raheem. He will play tomorrow and he'll be important."
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Oxlade-Chamberlain out for up to eight weeks

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain does not require surgery on his injured knee and should be available for selection at Euro 2016.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has revealed Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain could be out for up to eight weeks with a knee injury.
Wenger commented on Sunday that the midfielder would miss "a few weeks" with ligament damage sustained in last Tuesday's Champions League defeat to Barcelona.
And, while scans pointed to a longer lay-off for the England international, Wenger admits it could have been a lot worse, with Oxlade-Chamberlain still in with a shout of earning a spot at Euro 2016.
"We thought there could be some [surgery] when we saw the MRI but we got positive news," he told a news conference. "The next eight weeks means March, April he will be out. He should be alright [for Euro 2016]."
Wenger also conceded he could now be forced to delve deeper into his squad to cover first team players who are struggling to cope with Arsenal's packed fixture list.
"It's possible, yes," he added. "Some players are still not completely fit, like Danny Welbeck – medically, I still need advice on that."
Arsenal faces Swansea City on Wednesday looking to bounce back from the Barcelona result, as well as a 3-2 Premier League defeat at Manchester United on Sunday.
"Of course we gave a lot against Barcelona and a disappointing result and it had an impact on our belief against Manchester United," he told reporters. "We want to focus on the positives and recover from that defeat and give our best until the end of the season. I don't think we have any [injury] problems from Sunday, apart from one or two [with] muscular tightness, but everyone should be available."
Arsenal is five points adrift of league leader Leicester City following the loss at Old Trafford, and three off second-placed Tottenham.
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Why the wheels aren't falling off Leicester's title bid … yet

The Foxes could only manage a draw at home to West Brom on Tuesday but the fans should remain optimistic after another pleasing performance and with the pressure now on Tottenham.

If someone who didn't know the circumstances had seen the dejection that met the final whistle at the King Power Stadium, they would likely have thought Leicester City had blown any chance of winning the Premier League title. In truth the Foxes are very much alive in the race for glory. A 2-2 draw at home to West Brom is not the kind of result a title tilt is generally built on, and after the Foxes’ heroics in recent months it is not hard to work out why many supporters left Filbert Way feeling a little glum about their chances of completing the ultimate football fairy tale.
But in reality this was a performance that prospective champions would be proud of. In a match in which many felt it could struggle to break down the Baggies, Claudio Ranieri’s side mustered 22 shots on goal and had enough clear-cut chances to win three matches. Only the woodwork and Ben Foster stopped the Foxes this time.
"It was a fantastic match, and I am very pleased with our performance," Ranieri told reporters after the match. "[We needed] just a goal, but we created a lot of chances. It was a little unlucky, but I’m happy.
"I am more confident now than after the match against Norwich. With Norwich we won the match at the end but we created very, very few chances. Tonight we created a lot of chances, drew the match, but that’s okay.
"Four points from two difficult matches is fantastic. We are alive. Our spirit is ready to fight again. I’m not so happy without the three points, but you can’t always get three points. Then I look at the performance, and the performance was fantastic."
Leicester’s run-in has been lauded as remarkably straightforward, but Saturday’s last-gasp win over Norwich only served to show that it would be anything but as opponents set out to limit the space for Ranieri’s swashbuckling attacking players to operate in.
A similarly cagey encounter was expected against West Brom, particularly given Tony Pulis’s penchant for playing multiple defenders and stifling the league’s top sides. His men had only conceded 14 goals away from home in the league before the visit to the King Power and were buoyed by two straight wins that have helped them pull clear of relegation trouble.
But with Saido Berahino and Stephane Sessegnon retained alongside Salomon Rondon in an attacking trio, it was clear early on that there would be opportunities for Leicester if it was good enough to take them.
It may have needed Rondon’s opener to stun the Foxes into life, but for 75 minutes they were thrilling to watch. Riyad Mahrez seems to be back in the groove after a quiet game against Norwich while Marc Albrighton’s crossing ability is matched by very few in England's top flight at present.
Alongside them, Danny Drinkwater put in perhaps his finest performance of what is becoming a stellar season for the former Manchester United trainee, while Andy King helped cover for N’Golo Kante’s absence in a hard-working display that was rewarded with a goal.
Many pondered how Ranieri’s side would cope without the summer signing from Caen, but King highlighted the spirit that has been created in the squad in a similar fashion to match-winner Leonardo Ulloa three days earlier, as he barely put a foot wrong.
Craig Gardner’s stunning free kick may have denied the home side all three points, but there were very few negatives that Ranieri will lose sleep over.
His defense – most notably Robert Huth – struggled at times to deal with the physicality of Rondon, but having not conceded at home for nearly eight hours, they can be forgiven for one sub-par display. They cannot afford to make it a habit, of course, but some of their title challengers have far bigger issues to resolve before they start to close the gap.
The draw means that Tottenham can overhaul Leicester at the summit with a win over West Ham on Wednesday, but if anything that could suit the Foxes. Suddenly the pressure would not be quite as intense, while Mauricio Pochettino’s side would need to deal with being top of the Premier League for the first time outside of August in the division’s history.
Tottenham’s visit to Upton Park is followed closely by the North London derby on Saturday, meaning at least one of Leicester’s title rivals will have dropped points by the time it takes the pitch again against Watford that evening. The clash at Vicarage Road now takes on more significance, but failing to beat the Hornets would still not be the end of the club's challenge.
In stoppage time Ranieri had to stop goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel from going forward for a free kick, leaving the Dane visibly furious with his manager. But Leicester’s players, as well as their fans, must realize that all is not lost.
Pulis revealed he will now be supporting the Foxes to go on and win the title, and he is far from alone in doing that. If the performance against his team can be replicated going forward, he may not be disappointed come May 15.

 Goal.com