England attacker Raheem Sterling has described teammate Wayne Rooney as a "world-class player" amidst speculation surrounding his place in the team.

Sterling was deployed in Rooney's preferred role just behind the striker during England's 2-1 defeat to Italy on Saturday, with the youngster impressing on his first competitive start for the Three Lions.

Conversely, Rooney has drawn heavy criticism for his performance on the left wing, intensifying calls for the Manchester United man to be dropped for Thursday's match against Uruguay.

However, Sterling insists that Rooney is a role model for him in training and revealed that the 28-year-old has given him plenty of advice throughout the tournament.

"I speak to him a lot. He just says to relax, express yourself and enjoy the game, really, and not to think too much about what is going on and to just play your normal game and you'll be fine," Sterling is quoted as saying by PA.

"Some of the stuff he does with the ball, you try to take little clips out of his play and try to really learn from that. He is a world-class player, I've watched him growing up. He is someone I looked up to so to have trained with him at this camp has been a real honour, really.

"He works really hard and is always improving as well, so for someone like that for me to look up to I am really glad to have him the team."

Rooney is England's fifth-highest goalscorer of all time with 39 strikes for the national side, but he is yet to find the back of the net in the World Cup.