World Cup, Group B: Alex Ferguson has slammed down the phone on Sven-Goran Eriksson once already this week, and England's coach can brace himself for another tirade when the news gets back to Manchester United of his plans for Wayne Rooney.
Details have emerged of a furious telephone row between Eriksson and Ferguson on Wednesday, after the result of Rooney's scan became known, which ended with the Scot, on holiday in the south of France, hanging up in a rage.
A day of fierce mudslinging and finger-pointing concluded here last night with Eriksson apparently determined to defy Ferguson by playing the forward in the group stage and, most worryingly for Rooney, with the real danger that he may have damaged his relationship with his club manager.
The first disclosure from the Black Forest was that Eriksson's dispute with Ferguson is now laced with so much antipathy that diplomatic relations have officially been called off. The next revelation was that Eriksson still hopes to play Rooney against Sweden in 11 days, even though it goes against the advice of the leading foot specialist in the country.
Throw in allegations that United deliberately misled the public about Rooney's rehabilitation and an increasingly rancorous saga threatens to become one of the biggest controversies in English World Cup history before a ball has been kicked.
Publicly, Eriksson said only that Rooney's X-rays had shown his broken metatarsal had fully healed and that, out of courtesy, United could send their medical staff over to Germany to take a second opinion once he had decided the player was sufficiently fit to make his comeback. Arrangements have also been made to unbolt the gates of their training ground if United want to send in Prof Angus Wallace, the independent specialist who oversaw Wednesday's scans in Manchester and reported back that Rooney should wait until after the group stages.
The one thing that United and the Football Association agree on is that Wallace, a professor of orthopaedic surgery at Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre, is one of the best in his business. Yet Eriksson has made it clear he regards the professor's advice as secondary to that of his fitness coach, Ivan Carminati.
The other players were told not to tackle Rooney when he resumed full training for the first time yesterday, but, paradoxically, the issue, according to Eriksson, is no longer the condition of the player's foot but the length of time it will take for him to be match-fit. On that count, Eriksson has made it clear he will give little credence to a professor with no football background and will take his recommendations from his backroom team, starting with Carminati.
Ferguson regards that as reckless, but Eriksson, using Fifa's competition rules, has been able to pull rank and, despite his natural aversion to confrontation, the Swede believes he has no reason to feel guilty. Tellingly, the FA's information is that Rooney's injury was never as bad as United made out.
Eriksson, it transpires, was informed at an early stage that Rooney would make it and there is deep-rooted scepticism within England's camp about the reasons for United releasing a statement 10 days ago stating it was a double fracture close to the joint of his foot, making it "an injury which takes longer to heal". The suggestion is that that claim was highly dubious.
Rooney's first concern is getting himself into the shape that lessens the risk of further injury. He was blowing heavily in yesterday's session and underwent tests afterwards with Carminati. The scales showed he had lost 7lb.
Beyond the World Cup, Rooney will have other concerns. Ferguson, it emerges, wanted the 20-year-old to put club before country and withdraw of his own accord. United's manager expressed his feelings in the strongest possible terms, breaking his holidays to warn his player of where his priorities should lie. The consequences would be dire if he were to be re-injured, and a deeply aggrieved Ferguson said as much.
Wallace also lectured Rooney about the dangers of rushing back and susceptibility to secondary injuries such as hamstring and thigh strains. He was adamant Rooney should wait until the knock-out stages, and United asked the FA to add its name to a joint statement confirming the striker would be held back. Eriksson refused.
United's stance is that Rooney's foot still needs protection, which is substantiated by the fact he has been instructed to put special insoles - orthotics - in his boots. The club have also cited Eriksson's declaration from the last World Cup that David Beckham had fully recovered from his metatarsal injury. Eriksson subsequently admitted Beckham was only 70 per cent ready.
The ructions seem certain to continue, though Rooney's presence has undoubtedly lifted the mood.
"Wayne is buzzing and so is the rest of the squad," said Steven Gerrard. "He's our best player and having him back helps our chances of going all the way. We need to be patient, because you can't really throw a player into a World Cup game if he's not match fit."
Meanwhile, Gerrard has given England a fitness scare ahead of the World Cup opener with Paraguay in Frankfurt tomorrow and rates his chances of playing as "50-50".
The Liverpool midfielder is battling to overcome a knock on his hip which caused him to go into back spasms during training earlier in the week.
Gerrard took some part in yesterday's session but is hedging his bets as to whether he will available.
"It is not a back problem. I got a knock on my hip which made my back go into spasms," he said.
"The good thing is it is improving all the time. I have got a good chance of playing on Saturday, but I need to keep working on it from now until Saturday.
"What is a good chance? As we speak now, I am probably 50-50 to play - but if it keeps improving as it has done over the last 24 hours, then I'll be there."
Gerrard, who missed the last World Cup after undergoing groin surgery, added: "I've not had a back problem for years. This has come from the knock.
"I don't know how it is going to respond but it has improved a lot over the last 24 hours. "
Guardian Service
