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Landon Donovan claims England are under massive pressure to win the World Cup and they cannot rely on a "tired" Wayne Rooney to fire them to glory.
USA face England in their opening Group C clash and Donovan has stoked the flames ahead of the tie by claiming star striker Rooney will struggle in South Africa due to his punishing domestic season.
Donovan told Yahoo Sports that England's players are going to buckle as they are under "more pressure" from their fans to do well in South Africa as it would be seen as "absolutely devastating" if they did not reach the later stages of the tournament.
Speaking about England's star striker, the American claimed the 49 games that Rooney has played for Manchester United will be a huge physical drain on the forward and his sharpness in the World Cup will suffer as a result.
He said: "Rooney is a top player. In my opinion, he is one of the best players in the world right now.
"But the other part of it is that he has played a lot of games and he is tired. He is probably worn out."
Anyone who has placed a <a href="http://betting.betfred.com/713/category/sport-betting-news/football-betting/">World Cup bet</a> on Rooney to finish top scorer at the tournament might be worried about what the USA man has to say.
Donovan's comments follow those said by his team-mate Jozy Altidore, who recently stated that the USA should not fear England in the World Cup as they are capable of beating Fabio Capello's men in South Africa even if the <a href="http://betting.betfred.com/713/sport-betting-news/football-betting/ancelotti-issues-pompey-warning/">online football betting</a> suggests otherwise.
Written by Philtom
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