ROONEY OR NOT, ENGLAND A HOPE

PELE says England can reach the World Cup final even if striker Wayne Rooney fails to recover from injury.The Brazilian great, himself a triple World Cup winner, has told English fans not to despair before next month's finals in Germany, citing his own experience as proof that an injury to one player need not prevent a team from winning the trophy.
Rooney remains set to travel with the England squad. But the 20-year-old Manchester United forward is likely to miss most of England's group stage matches after breaking a foot bone just six weeks before the tournament.
"I think in the last four years, there is no doubt England have improved a lot," Pele said yesterday.
"In the last 10 years they have been the best organised team and have a good chance to get to the final, no doubt.
"Unfortunately for England they have a problem with Rooney having broken his foot. He is a fantastic player and is a big loss for England.
"This is a big problem, but even without him I think England are a very strong team for this World Cup."
Pele burst on to the international stage in Sweden in 1958, when he starred in Brazil's first World Cup win at the age of 17. Four years later he was a member of the squad that defended the trophy in Chile before taking a leading role in the 1970 World Cup-winning team in Mexico.
But Pele had plenty of injury setbacks along the way. His semi-final hat-trick and goal double in 1958 came after a knee injury had ruled him out of the opening games. In Chile a groin problem limited him to just two appearances.
It is no surprise that former forward Pele, now 65, backs England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson in the Swede's decision to take Rooney with him to Germany.
"I think it is (right) because it will give confidence to the team. If the doctor thinks he can be recalled, I think it is good. It makes sense for the team and the group," he said.
"In my first World Cup I did not play the first games in Sweden because I was injured. But then I came in and the same could happen to Rooney."
English defender Jamie Carragher said yesterday his team must be ready to repeat Liverpool's FA Cup final heroics to progress at the World Cup.
In one of the FA Cup's greatest finals, Liverpool twice came from behind to snatch a 3-3 draw with West Ham United before its exhausted players won a penalty shootout last weekend.
"The FA Cup is every year and the World Cup is every four years, but who knows when you're going to be in an FA Cup final again?" he said.
"In a World Cup game, if there's 20 minutes to go and the score's not going right, you know it could be another four years (to wait) - and some players may never get the chance again."