By Rob Woollard
Nuremberg - Sven-Goran Eriksson is considering whether to start Wayne Rooney in England's crunch World Cup match with Sweden after the star striker's successful comeback against Trinidad and Tobago.
England qualified for the last 16 after defeating the Caribbean minnows in a faltering 2-0 performance that left them needing only a draw against the Swedes to be sure of topping Group B.
But with England keen to avoid a possible last 16 meeting with Germany, Eriksson is determined to leave nothing to chance - and that could mean a place in the starting line-up for the Rooney.
'The World Cup needs a player like Wayne Rooney' "In principle, I can do it," said Eriksson when asked whether the Manchester United star would start in Tuesday's match against the Swedes in Cologne.
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"It's totally up to me and this time no doctor will have a say. Wayne is match fit and it was good for him to get 30 minutes on the pitch.
"We don't want to rush him but we will look very closely at how he does and we will take it one day at a time."
Rooney entered the fray as a substitute for Michael Owen after dramatically being given the all clear earlier on Thursday after a new examination by two independent medical experts.
It was the latest, and Eriksson hopes, the final, twist in a saga that has dominated the build-up to England's World Cup campaign ever since Rooney's foot was fractured in a Premiership match against Chelsea on April 29.
Although Rooney was not involved in either of England's winning goals, scored by Peter Crouch and Steven Gerrard, there can be no doubt that his introduction provided the team with a badly needed lift.
Eriksson said he was relieved that his star player was now fit for action and expressed confidence that Rooney will soon be at his optimum level.
"We all know what kind of a football player he is.
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