Rooney warns of 'intimidating' atmosphere
Wayne Rooney has warned England's young players of the "intimidating" atmosphere they can expect against Scotland at Celtic Park on Tuesday.
The historic rivals round off their fixtures for 2014 in Glasgow as the countries meet north of the border for the first time since 1999.
Much of the pre-match build-up has centred on the level of physicality that will be on show at Celtic Park, with Roy Hodgson and opposite number Gordon Strachan both expecting a competitive and hard-fought encounter.
However, captain Rooney - who won his 100th international cap in Saturday's 3-1 win over Slovenia - has spoken to England's younger players to warn of the off-field atmosphere that will likely greet them.
"I've played up here a few times and you know at the start of the game that their fans will be really up for it," he said.
"It will be quite intimidating if you’re not used to it, so we need to make sure they're ready for it, to get them settled. You have to be ready for the start of the game. I'm sure we will be.
"I have spoken to the younger players because it can take you by surprise. It will be a big test.
"Everyone knows this stadium and the fans here have a great reputation of making it an intimidating place to come."
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With both sides having won respective qualifiers at the weekend, their midweek friendly will likely see a number of changes in terms of personnel.
However Rooney does not feel this will detract from the spectacle of a fixture between the two rivals and said his side would need to keep their cool.
"If there are drastic changes, we'll be up for it," he added.
"We have to play the game within the rules. I don’t think it’ll be like the games of 20 years ago.
"There will be an edge to it, but that is what you expect from this kind of fixture."
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