FIFA World Cup notes: Bad boys win tournaments, Wayne Rooney says

Wayne Rooney says teams that succeed at the World Cup are nasty and cynical and England needs to play that way if it wants to win.

“You look at teams who have won the tournament over previous years and you can see that nastiness in them,” the England forward said Saturday. “I think we have to get that in us. We’re maybe too honest, I feel, as a team.”

According to Rooney, being honest counted against England in the 2-1 loss to Uruguay on Thursday that knocked them out of the tournament.

“They committed I don’t know how many fouls, clever fouls, really, which slow the game down,” he said. “It’s small margins, but those small things can amount to a big thing.”

England is already out of contention after losses to Italy and Uruguay. Not since 1958 had England failed to make it to the knockout rounds.

Rooney pointed to England’s failure to put pressure on the referee to send off Uruguay’s Diego Godin, who avoided a second yellow card despite fouling Daniel Sturridge.

“You see players surrounding the referees,” Rooney said. “I got kicked 10 times and I don’t think there was a yellow card given to an opponent. We try and be honest, but maybe that’s a fault.”

Tiki-taka

Italy’s team physician says midfielder Daniele De Rossi will “probably” miss Tuesday’s key match against Uruguay due to an injured calf muscle. … Ivory Coast players Yaya and Kolo Toure will stay at the World Cup despite the death of their brother Ibrahim, 28, who died Thursday. … Dozens of Jewish demonstrators gathered for a minute of silence in Sao Paulo before the Argentina-Iran match, demanding justice for a still unsolved bombing attack against a Buenos Aires Jewish center 20 years ago that left 85 dead. An Argentinian prosecutor has blamed Iran and its Hezbollah proxy for the worst terrorist attack in Argentine history.