Gareth Southgate: 'No doubt in keeping Wayne Rooney as England captain'

Gareth Southgate has claimed that he did not have any doubts about keeping Wayne Rooney as England captain.

The Manchester United skipper has struggled for form this season, starting on the bench in his last three club games under manager Jose Mourinho.

Southgate, who is in interim charge of the senior team following Sam Allardyce's exit, has given his backing to Rooney ahead of the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Malta and Slovenia.

"What I've learned is that Rooney is the outstanding leader in that group," Southgate said in this morning's press conference. "On and off the field Wayne has provided that over the last two years and has been really impressive, there was no doubt in my mind that [he should keep the captaincy].

"He was an incredible emergence on the scene. Without being disrespectful, the character I saw in front of me last week is completely different. There was a stark contrast. I couldn't have been more impressed with the discussion we had.

"We can't have just one leader. We need a team of leaders and that has to emerge - it's not the right environment if you rely on one leader on the field. The England rugby team had seven or eight who could captain the side. The England team I played in was the same. Wayne bares a lot of burden for this team and I think the team has to pull together and step forward."

Allardyce lasted just 67 days in charge of England after he was implicated in The Telegraph's investigation into corruption.