Wayne Rooney has urged new England manager Thomas Tuchel to find a way of getting Cole Palmer into his Three Lions team. The former Chelsea and Bayern Munich boss was hired as Gareth Southgate’s replacement last October but the German did not officially begin his new role until the start of this month. Tuchel has been a regular face at grounds up and down the country in recent weeks as he considers his options before naming his first squad in March.

England commence their World Cup qualifying campaign with two games against Albania and Latvia at Wembley. Although Palmer is sure to make the cut, injury permitting, it remains to be seen whether he is able to force his way into the starting line-up and in what position. Southgate was heavily criticised last summer for using Palmer sparingly, with the 22-year-old reduced to a bit-part role that saw him fail to start a single game en route to the final.

The former Manchester City star appears set for a more prominent role under his new boss, who spoke effusively about Palmer’s qualities following December’s qualifying draw. Tuchel said: ‘He is definitely on form everyone would agree on that hopefully he can still grow and keep the level up and then everything will be fine. ‘Everyone enjoys watching him. He is cool, he is composed, he is very clinical in finishing and assisting.’.

Palmer has enjoyed another fruitful campaign at Stamford Bridge and Rooney sees no reason why he cannot thrive consistently on the international stage. ‘[Cole] Palmer has to play [for England]. His confidence, you can see it – I think he looks like someone who [can deal with] the pressure,’ the former England skipper told The Overlap. ‘Most teams now are playing with a front five, and the wide man becomes a number 10. You’re defending from a wide position, but in possession you’re actually a number 10.

‘It’s not as structures as it was [at Manchester United] with Beckham on one side and Giggs on the left, and they’re staying there out wide.’. Despite appearing to be a shoo-in for selection, competition for places remains intense, especially considering Phil Foden’s return to goalscoring form in recent weeks. The City star was another player who struggled to live up to his reputation last summer and earlier this week the 24-year-old vented his frustration and blamed his lacklustre displays on being played out of position.

He said: ‘I feel frustrated I didn’t get out what I wanted to. The position I was put in on the left was very difficult to influence the game. ‘Coming off last season — being the best player in the Premier League and playing centre midfield — I do feel the position was quite difficult to get used to. ‘I’m one who can play multiple positions and I had to try to deal with it the best I could. I don’t feel like England ever got going or performed to our potential.’.

Rooney, meanwhile, admitted he had a measure of sympathy for Foden but insisted the nature of the modern game means positions aren’t as rigid as they once were which should have allowed a player of his talent to thrive, even in a role that differs to the one he plays for his country. He said: ‘I was comfortable playing on the left, but I hated playing on the right. I agree with him in terms of being left footed – it’s harder coming inside. When I was right footed, playing on the right, I used to hate it.

‘Now, the game is so much different – there’s so much rotation. In possession, he was never stuck out on the left, he was coming inside and if anything, they had too many players [inside]. They had Jude [Bellingham], Harry [Kane] – so they were actually clogging it up.’. Arrow MORE: Tottenham push to sign £24m attacker ahead of Arsenal, Man Utd and Chelsea. Arrow MORE: What Thierry Henry has said about ‘extraordinary’ Arsenal and Man Utd target Mathys Tel.