Red card: Rooney is given his marching orders and could miss the opening two games in Euro 2012

And when Capello was then asked if Rooney would start any of the other four friendlies, he replied: ‘He will be fresh for the Euros! Sometimes he will come on at half-time. But not from the start, he will not start. We need to prepare the first XI who will start in the Euros.

‘I have a lot of forwards at this moment, really good forwards, and  I need to find the best solution. I need to find the solution for the first game, or two games, that Rooney will not play.

'And if we find that solution, he needs to work to return to the first team.’  

That was a stark warning to Rooney, prompting the question of whether he still intended to even take Rooney to the Euros.

‘Good question!’ he replied before insisting that he did, adding: ‘I hope it’s only a one-game ban.’ But he was asked, again, if he was serious about dropping him for the friendlies that he remains available for.

Red rage: England manager Fabio Capello has told Rooney he will not start him in the upcoming friendlies

‘Yes, yes, yes,’ he said. ‘In my life as a manager I have put on the bench a lot of players. I always decided who was for me the best player at that moment. I’ve got 23 players to select. Sometimes I make mistakes but I try to select the best players, in the best form. 

‘But without the sending-off of Rooney we would have won the game. It changed completely when we were playing 10 against 11.’ 

Given the chance, the FA will defend Rooney, stressing that he did not dispute the decision, but they are at the mercy of UEFA’s  disciplinary chiefs.

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