Rooney Says England Is Wasting Mainoo. Heskey Wants to Know Why Henderson Is Even There.

Wayne Rooney didn’t mince words. England’s all-time leading scorer went on his podcast and basically told Thomas Tuchel he’s getting the midfield wrong. The specific fix: start Kobbie Mainoo against Congo in the World Cup Round of 32 on Wednesday.

England topped Group L without much drama — two wins, a draw — but the lineup conversation has been louder than the results. Tuchel has stuck with Declan Rice and Elliot Anderson as his double pivot. Mainoo, fresh off a monster season at Manchester United, has mostly watched.

Rooney laid it out simply on The Wayne Rooney Show. “I’d go with Declan Rice sitting, and I’d go with Mainoo and Jude Bellingham,” he said. “Mainoo can give you a bit of both, but in tight areas, that’s Mainoo’s biggest strength — his feet in tight areas, and then he has got a little pass. I think he’s the only one who is capable of doing that in those tight areas.”

That’s the argument. Rice holds. Bellingham roams. Mainoo operates in the phone booth spaces where games against compact defenses get won or lost. Tuchel has preferred Anderson, who had a breakout year at Nottingham Forest, but Rooney sees a different skillset for this specific opponent.

Emile Heskey, sitting next to Rooney, went further. He questioned why Tuchel summoned Jordan Henderson off the bench against Panama instead of giving Mainoo those minutes. “I was surprised Jordan Henderson was in the squad,” Heskey said. “And to see out the game you bring on a 30-something-year-old and not a 20-something-year-old to do the same. He probably has three more tournaments ahead of him and can grow into the tournament. I’m not sure how I’d feel as Kobbie Mainoo.”

Mainoo’s club form this season makes the benching harder to square. After Michael Carrick took over at United in January, Mainoo started nearly every game. He finished with a goal and three assists in 30 appearances, helping United climb to third in the Premier League. That’s not a hot streak. That’s a six-month run of top-level consistency.

Meanwhile, Anderson is reportedly on his way to Manchester City in a big-money move this summer. United was also in the conversation before City jumped ahead. Heskey warned about the weight of that price tag. “You have to look past the price tag,” he said. “The beating stick is always going to be the price tag.”

Rooney was blunt about missing out on Anderson too. “I’m gutted Manchester United didn’t get him,” he said. “But we’ve seen it when players go for big-money moves — like Kalvin Phillips and Jack Grealish to some extent — they [sometimes] don’t fit in.”

Mainoo started the Euro 2024 final for England. He performed on that stage. Tuchel now has a knockout game against a Congo side that will sit deep and try to counter. If the game gets tight in the middle third, Mainoo’s ability to receive and release under pressure might be exactly what England needs. Rooney and Heskey think so. Tuesday’s lineup sheet will tell us if Tuchel agrees.