Capello tips Rooney to hit goal trail

England’s No 1 striker heads into this evening’s Euro 2012 qualifier against Bulgaria in Sofia with just one goal to his name in two years.

It is a quite staggering statistic, taking in, as it does, not only the barren year from March 2010 when Rooney’s form dipped dramatically, but also the period beforehand which launched his best campaign, which brought him 34 goals for Manchester United.

With a groin injury threatening the participation of Darren Bent and neither Andy Carroll nor Jermain Defoe currently regarded as first-choice for their clubs, there could be more pressure than usual on Rooney to perform. But Capello feels the injection of confidence the 25-year-old gained last weekend, in addition to the boost provided by United’s dazzling array of younger players, leaves him on the verge of making a big impact for England..

“Goals are a fantastic medicine for a forward,” said Capello. “Now is a good moment for him. The spirit of Manchester United is different. Those young players have put something different on the pitch.”

The big question for Capello is how many of Rooney’s Old Trafford team-mates he should call upon. Ashley Young is a certainty and Chris Smalling appears more likely than not to make his England debut. There is also a growing feeling that Phil Jones may be handed his first cap too given the excellence of his performances during United’s opening three Premier League games. It means the player most likely to miss out is Tom Cleverley as England look to gain the win that would leave them in pole position to qualify as Group G winners.

Capello was giving little away, though. “It is interesting for me because I can select young players when they play in the Premier League,” he said. “They have found such confidence. I have some ideas, but I also have to be careful.”

With England now ranked No 4 in the world and Bulgaria having fallen so far – only 15,000 tickets have so far been sold – the Italian held a meeting with his players on Wednesday to urge them not to take anything for granted.

“I have seen two Bulgaria games, and against Switzerland and Montenegro they played really well,” said Capello. “They are very dangerous on the counter-attack. We had a meeting yesterday and I told all the players to focus on our opponents, not look at the world rankings.”

Capello’s major problems surround his midfield combination, with two of Frank Lampard, Gareth Barry and Tottenham new-boy Scott Parker expected to get the nod. Theo Walcott, who has made his peace with the England coach over some pretty pointed remarks in his autobiography, and Stewart Downing will both be hopeful of starts.

Joe Hart has no such worries of course, given neither of his two goalkeeping rivals, David Stockdale, currently on loan at Ipswich, and Derby’s Frankie Fielding, have a minute’s senior international experience between them. West Brom’s Ben Foster would have been the obvious deputy but he has opted not to make himself available, something Capello appears at a loss to understand.

“As a player I was proud to play with the Italian team,” he recalled. “The players who are here are proud to stay with us, to wear the English shirt. It is really important to have that.”