Rooney flies out as Capello frets over striker's state of mind

The 24-year-old's private life has come under intense scrutiny since the early hours of Sunday morning when several newspapers made allegations about his conduct and there had been speculation that the Manchester United forward might remain at home.

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But he has travelled with his team-mates and is expected to take part in this afternoon's scheduled training session at St Jakob Park. The Football Association and the England manager, Fabio Capello, however, have yet to confirm that he will be in the starting XI.

The Switzerland head coach, Ottmar Hitzfeld, expects Rooney to play tomorrow. "I expect Rooney to be on the pitch," he said. "Such a thing like that will weigh on a player. Fabio Capello is not able to leave a player of his class out. I am no psychologist but Wayne Rooney is looking sharp and I am sure he will perform well.

"The only reason he didn't do well in the World Cup was that he was injured beforehand and didn't have time to make his fitness up in time for the tournament."