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On the surface, a really daft question. After all, the England side is not exactly brimming over with natural goal scorers is it?

Defoe seems to have been abandoned. Owen was put out to pasture ages ago. Bent is a threat, but not a worldbeater; Crouch is neither. Carlton Cole struggles to score goals in the Championship now. But if you give it bit of real thought, as opposed to scorn, you can see that there is more to England than Rooney. And possibly even life after Rooney.

For a start, for all his talent and his achievements for Man Utd in the Premier League and Champion’s League, how much has Wayne Rooney ever achieved at international level? Not a whole lot, apart from needless sending offs, or an indifferent performance at the last World Cup.

Sure, you can blame injuries or pure exhaustion from the Manchester United merry-go-round of fixtures for Rooney’s fairly paltry contribution in an England shirt. But whatever the excuses or explanations, the bottom line is simple: Rooney simply hasn’t gotten it done in an England shirt and not surpisingly, England has not really accomplished much over the years with him in the side.

Sad perhaps, considering the man’s obvious talents and his achievements at club level; but true,nonetheless.

Is it a coincidence that England beat Spain 1-0 at Wembley without Rooney, representing the first time in nearly a century since England had beaten a world ranked number one side? In my view ,no. And before you start shouting that it was only a friendly, hang on a minute .

As we all know, friendlies aren’t 'friendly' these days; they are highly competitive with neither side fancying being embarrassed, especially amongst the top sides. It was no small achievement for England to beat Spain, even if it was 'only' a friendly. Spain still featured, right from the start, some of the greatest names in the sport, notably the two Davids Villa and Silva.

So how in God’s name did this happen, especially without Rooney and with England offering virtually nothing in attack in the first half as Bent was as isolated as the Arctic Circle? England did it by presenting something different for a change in the second half.

It’s one thing to have the likes of Walcott on the pitch as a winger, who can and does terrify any defender at any level. And all the better that Walcott can play either as a winger or a striker . Then add to the mix Danny Wellbeck and all of the sudden England look different in attack. Or Daniel Sturridge .

Again we offer something that we haven’t had up front in a long time. Pace, clinical finishing and unpredictability. And that’s without the benefit of having another pacy winger, Ashley Young, on the pitch.

The truth is that in the Rooney years England have been incredibly predictable, slow and ponderous; as boring in our passing and movement as humanly imaginable. Is that largely, or partly even, Rooney’s fault? Not necessarily.

It could be the fault of England managers, past and present, who perhaps have relied too heavily on our 'talisman' or who simply haven’t surrounded Rooney with the right players. Or it could be that Rooney, for whatever reason, can’t handle the pressure of the international stage and the weight of expectation. Or both.

One thing is clear. No matter how many moments of magic Rooney has within him, as West Ham re-learned to our peril last spring, one thing is indisputable. It has been proven time and time again. And that is that for whatever reason, Rooney does not seem to have the temperament for international football. Or put another way, he simply has too much temper to succeed in international football. And England has paid a steep price for that over the years.

Am I suggesting that Rooney is finished in an England shirt? Hardly. But I am suggesting that he should not be considered as important to the England set-up as he used to be. Relying too heavily on him has brought us absolutely nothing. He should be thought of as just one piece of the puzzle and not the main piece around which the puzzle is built.

England’s future, both near and medium term, does not revolve around Wayne Rooney, partly because of the temperament and unreliability of the player. Does that make me pessimistic for Euro 2012 and beyond? Not in the least. Not with players like Wellbeck, Sturridge, Walcott, Young, Milner and others on the scene.

Ok, so it was a friendly. But England still beat the World’s number one. Without Wayne Rooney.

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