Wayne Rooney excited by youthful England World Cup squad

Wayne Rooney has claimed that England's World Cup squad has the potential to provide excitement at this summer's tournament in Brazil.

Roy Hodgson included a number of young players in the squad on Monday, and Rooney believes that the England manager had no choice but to recognise the achievements of the some of the more inexperienced members of the setup.

"The players we have in the squad really excite me and I'm sure they will excite the fans. Obviously the manager picks the squad but you can see that he has seen the potential of the young players, too," the Manchester United forward told the Daily Mail.

"Look at Raheem Sterling, for example. He has been incredible. You could see straight away the talent he had and he has kicked on again now. For Liverpool he has been outstanding.

"And then we have the likes of Ross Barkley. He has had a great season with Everton. Then [Daniel] Sturridge is more experienced, [Adam] Lallana is a bit older, too. So there is a great mix and I think we can surprise people. It's exciting."

England begin their World Cup campaign against Italy on June 14.