Rooney deserves Pele tag - Beckham

Captain David Beckham says England's teenager striker Wayne Rooney deserves to be compared with Pele for his impact on Euro 2004. England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson said no player had made an impact on a tournament to equal Rooney's since a 17-year-old Pele lit up the 1958 World Cup.

Rooney, 18, scored two goals and made another in England's 4-2 win over Croatia on Monday.

Asked about Eriksson's comment, Beckham told reporters: "I think he's probably right.

"It's a great compliment but I think he (Rooney) deserves it because of how he is performing. If he carries on, then hopefully we'll go a long way in this tournament.

"He's an amazing player, he's proving that to a lot of people. He doesn't have to prove it to us because we know what a great player he is.

"He's doing it in each game and we're very happy to have him in our team."

Beckham, no longer the main focus of media interest in the England camp, did not think the wave of Rooney-mania would affect the teenager.

"That's the great thing about him, he's a very down to earth lad and I'm sure he'll stay that," said the skipper. "He's got great people behind him, a great family."

Midfielder Steven Gerrard, a fellow Liverpudlian who has befriended Rooney since he broke into the squad last year, said the teenager could guide England to the title.

"I feel as if there's no better player in Europe at the moment on current form. He's the best in Europe, it's as simple as that," Gerrard said.

"His performances have been really mature. He's holding the ball up well, he's bringing people into play and he's getting important goals for us.

"His all-round game is spot-on at the moment. Hopefully it will continue to the end of the tournament - and he can definitely help us win it," Gerrard added.

"If you look at his performances in the last three games he's helped us get into the last eight.

"But the whole team is doing well at the moment and if we keep performing like we did against Croatia I don't think many sides will want to meet us."