Chris Sutton Comments on Wayne Rooney, Sam Allardyce After Slovakia vs. England

One-time England international Chris Sutton believes Wayne Rooney is "killing" Harry Kane by playing in midfield and has urged Three Lions manager Sam Allardyce "to get a grip."

In his column for the Daily Mail, Sutton delivered a frank assessment of Allardyce's debut game as England boss—a 1-0 win over Slovakia on Sunday—and believed Rooney playing on the left side of a midfield three does not get the best out of Kane:

"

With Rooney in a deep-lying midfield role for most of the match, [Kane] was isolated up front and it killed his game. For Kane to be most effective he needs players in and around him to link up with. ...

Rooney can’t pick and choose where he plays—it’s not a testimonial. He is a lovely passer and technician but if he’s not playing to Kane’s strengths then the whole team suffer.

"

The Times' Henry Winter echoed Sutton's point in his review at half-time, while the Mirror's John Cross made a similar point about Kane:

Aside from an excellent delivery from Kyle Walker that the Tottenham Hotspur striker failed to connect with, clear-cut chances were at something of a premium, as the Three Lions laboured and Kane had little to feed off.

The three points came courtesy of a last-second strike from Adam Lallana after Kane had been withdrawn.

On Rooney, Sutton explained that Allardyce "needs to get a grip on his captain and tell him to play higher up the field."

He added: "Allardyce has said there is no point using Rooney in midfield if he is playing as a forward for Manchester United, and for the benefit of the team, he’s got to deploy him as a No. 10."

JOE KLAMAR/Getty Images

Football writer Nooruddean Choudry also believes the Three Lions boss needs to be more assertive with the United star:

The 30-year-old did not touch the ball once in Slovakia's penalty area on Sunday, and he largely struggled to forge significant chances for his side.

Indeed, the Telegraph's Matt Law and ESPN's Alex Shaw believe he shouldn't be in the team at all:

While Rooney is by far the most experienced outfield player England have available and is the country's all-time top scorer, his decline has been there for all to see for some time.

Indeed, the debate as to whether he would keep his captaincy was a distraction from the more important question—if he should even be selected.

Having kept the armband, it appears England will continue to rely on Rooney for some time to come.

To get the best out of him, Allardyce should indeed move him closer to Kane. This will allow him to link up with the striker more frequently and should provide the Spurs forward with more to chew on in the penalty area.