Gary Lineker: 'Daniel Sturridge should start over Wayne Rooney'

England legend Gary Lineker has called for Roy Hodgson to favour Daniel Sturridge ahead of Wayne Rooney up front at the World Cup.

Rooney scored 17 goals for Manchester United last term but it was Sturridge who caught the eye with 21 strikes for Liverpool. He also netted the opening goal in the 3-0 win against Peru last week.

Speaking to Blahzil.com, the former striker and current Match of the Day presenter said that the Reds hitman should take precedence over Rooney in Brazil.

Lineker said: "One thing should be pretty permanent - and that's that Sturridge plays up front, in the middle. He gives us different options. He gives us a threat behind the opposition defence, which I think is really important and that's something Wayne Rooney doesn't do so frequently.

"Rooney's very good at coming off of course, creating space, turning, hitting shots and bringing other people into the game, working hard. But in terms of a threat behind the opposition's defence, that's Sturridge's territory.

"That makes the opposition slightly nervous, so they edge a little further back which creates more space between the defence and midfield for others to exploit. If we can do that, it makes teams think."

England are currently in Miami, where they finish their World Cup preparations with friendlies against Ecuador and Honduras on June 7 and 10 respectively.