England legend George Cohen has urged Fabio Capello to leave Wayne Rooney at home for the 2012 European Championship following his three-match ban for a red card against Montenegro.
The ban means that Rooney will miss all three of England's group stage matches, and Capello is faced with the decision of taking Rooney for the knock-out stages, or replacing him altogether.
"Fabio Capello has got to take another player in place of Wayne Rooney," Cohen told The Mirror.
"You can't have a player that he can't use mooching around the tournament because that would be a total waste of time.
"For Capello, this was the last thing he wanted. It's a really, really bad situation for him. But we've got to learn from past lessons. You can't take players who are unable to play – whether they're carrying injuries or are suspended."
Cohen made 37 appearances at right-back for England, and was part of the 1966 World Cup winning squad.
