Manchester United ace Wayne Rooney missed England training this morning.

Rooney was forced to miss England's training session this morning so he could receive treatment for a kicked ankle he sustained in the 1-1 draw with the USA on Saturday.

The forward was absent from the main group that took to the pitches at England's World Cup base in Rustenburg and instead worked on the damaged joint in the team-hotel swimming pool.

The injury is not believed to be too serious and Rooney is expected to start in England's second match of the tournament against Algeria on Friday, but, nonetheless, his absence from training comes at a particularly precarious time for Fabio Capello's team.