Liverpool winger Stewart Downing reckons Manchester United ace Ashley Young is better in a central role.

Young is set to fill in for the banned Wayne Rooney when England face France.

Downing said: "When I first went to Aston Villa he was on the left, I was on the right and you saw his ability to get good crosses into the box and he's tricky.

"I prefer him to play in the hole, if I'm honest. At Villa, when he went into the hole and I went out wide I think we linked up quite well.

"He's tricky and finds himself in good areas and can nick a goal so I think you can see in the two games he's played what his attributes are - he can find a pass, score a goal and maybe now we have another player to play in that role as well as Rooney.

"You can see with the run of games he's had and scoring a few goals that his confidence has grown.

"He's a terrific player, a good lad and I personally like playing with him because we seem to be on the same wavelength. I think he's come into his own a bit and has the confidence he can do well in this team."