England’s all-time leading goalscorer Wayne Rooney has retired from international football after turning down the chance to be part of the squad for next month’s World Cup qualifiers. He declined an invitation from Gareth Southgate to return to the international set-up and instead decided to bow out after 119 caps and a record 53 goals for his country.
The 31-year-old, who joined Everton from Manchester United in the summer after 13 years at Old Trafford, was dropped from Southgate’s latest squad for the summer fixtures against Scotland and France in June. He had first burst into scene as a teenager, when he made his debut against Australia in February 2003 at the age of 17.