Kenny Dalglish has said that Wayne Rooney must be considered as one of England's greatest ever strikers.
The 29-year-old earned his 100th Three Lions cap in last night's 3-1 victory over Slovenia in which he scored from the penalty spot to move within five goals of England's all-time top goalscorer Sir Bobby Charlton.
In his column for The Mirror, former Liverpool player and manager Dalglish has argued that Rooney's all-round game, coupled with his fine goalscoring record, puts him among the greatest strikers in England's history.
He said: "Is he an England great? Well, let's get one thing straight right away: if you're as high in the scoring charts as Rooney, you have earned the right to be compared to all the country's top players.
"What makes Rooney stand out for me is that he is not even an out-and-out goalscorer. He's a team player. He's a grafter. He makes goals for others. He tracks back. He sacrifices himself for the team.
"So for a player like that to be so high in the list of England's all-time scorers is quite an attribute. That's why he absolutely belongs in the same company as [Jimmy] Greaves, [Gary] Lineker and Charlton."
Dalglish earned 102 caps and scored 30 goals for Scotland during his international career.
Kristian Johnson
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