Rooney is ready, say doctors

Nuremberg : England striker Wayne Rooney has been cleared to play in the World Cup following his broken foot after two independent medical experts examined him on Thursday.

The experts, after assessing Rooney hours before the Group B match against Trinidad & Tobago, said in a joint statement that the Manchester United forward had recovered more quickly than expected after fracturing a metatarsal on April 29.

"Wayne's recovery has been more rapid than expected over the past week, and this is due to the excellent care he has received and because Wayne has worked so hard at his recovery," the doctors said.

"It is our professional medical opinion that Wayne Rooney is now available to play in the World Cup," they said, giving a huge boost to England's World Cup bid.

The two men were Professor Angus Wallace, an expert in sports medicine and Professor Chris Moran, a specialist in fracture management.

Wallace had only examined the 20-year-old's fracture last week following a scan in Manchester and recommended that Rooney did not play before the second round, on June 24 or 25, if England qualified.

But he and Moran were persuaded to fly to Germany after the England team's medical staff reported remarkable progress by the striker, who is desperate to play.

"Wayne's recovery has been more rapid than expected over the past week, and this is due to the excellent care he has received since suffering the injury to his foot and because Wayne has worked so hard at his recovery," they said.

"Due to this, we were invited back earlier than anticipated to reassess Wayne by Dr Leif Sward, the England team doctor.

"We are independent experts and would like to make clear that the findings of our evaluation and decision have been made without any pressure from The Football Association."

Paying tribute to the care Rooney has received from England and United, they concluded: "Wayne's fitness levels are better now than before Euro 2004.

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"Due to his positive attitude and approach and the care he has received, Wayne has made a more rapid recovery than initially anticipated."

"The injury has healed and we are satisfied that he is as fit as he can be.

"We have carried out a full risk assessment related to returning him to play at this stage and that assessment has indicated that he is at no more risk than any other player who has recovered from an injury and is returning to competitive sport."

The implications of the statement are two-fold.

Firstly, Rooney is now highly likely to make a substitutes' appearance -- and a World Cup debut - in the second half against Trinidad & Tobago in Nuremberg.

His remarkable recovery has fully vindicated coach Sven-Goran Eriksson's decision last month to name Rooney in his World Cup squad.

Secondly, the statement also looks designed to allay any United fears that a player who has cost them nearly 30.0 million pounds ($55.4 million) and is key to their prospects next season is being rushed back into action before he is ready.

"We have Wayne's best interests at heart, as our sole concern is Wayne's well being - now and in the future," the experts said.

England's World Cup prospects also look a lot brighter after their laboured 1-0 victory over Paraguay in last Saturday's opener in sweltering conditions.