England centre-back John Stones has praised caretaker manager Gareth Southgate and hailed the continued impact of Wayne Rooney ahead of the side's World Cup qualifier with Malta on Saturday.
The 22-year-old has previously worked with Southgate, who is in charge for the Three Lions' next four games following the sacking of Sam Allardyce, at Under-21 level and said that his first training session had been a "happy" one.
"It's been quite similar to be honest, having worked with him for the Under-21s," Stones told reporters at a pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon. "He knows us all. It's been a good few days and everyone seems happy. Everyone is fighting for their starting spot and there's always healthy competition, which is great.
"Getting called up for your country is the biggest honour as a player, so all we can do is try our best. I think we all know what we expect, but it's always good to have a one-on-one with the manager."
The Manchester City defender, who has 11 England caps to his name, also spoke up the "massive" impact of captain Rooney for the younger members of the squad.
"Having Wayne Rooney around is massive, giving us pointers," he added. "They've been there, done it. It's good that we all get on, it doesn't matter the age or what club you pay for.
"Wayne is definitely still a key man, and is always fully focused when we comes here."
After the game with Malta, England will travel to Slovenia for their third World Cup qualifier on Tuesday.
Neil Wilkes
