A few bets were probably placed on Wayne Rooney getting a red card and here, amid the chaos that unfolded inside a pulsating Podgorica Stadium, was the reason why.

Because if one player is going to snap, if one player is going to miss the start of a major tournament, it is the one on whom England have become so reliant.

Just as it was with Paul Gascoigne, England’s best player is their most volatile, and not for the first time Rooney let outside pressures infect his mind to the point where he lashed out wildly at an opponent. It was a ludicrous act, committed just yards from a stunned, no doubt sickened, Fabio Capello.

Lashing out: Wayne Rooney kicks Miodrag Dzudovic (above) before receiving his marching orders (below)

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