Our man, Scott Wilson, is in Marseille with regular updates throughout England's Euro 2016 campaign...

AMONGST the English media, there is a certain decorum about how to ask potentially awkward questions. Clearly, in Russia, there are no such niceties.

So when Wayne Rooney sat down in the press conference room at Marseille’s Stade Velodrome last night, he immediately found himself facing something akin to an interrogation.

“Wayne, there is a popular opinion in Russia that Wayne Rooney is not the same as he was a few years ago,” said a journalist from the Moscow-based newspaper, Sport Express. “What do you think of that opinion, because it is also expressed by the Russian players and the Russian coach?”

Talk about going in two-footed. Rooney shuffled in his chair slightly, then focused on the journalist in question with the kind of steely stare that his opponents have come to know all too well down the years.

“I think everyone who watches the game of football is entitled to their opinions, but I know the qualities I have and to be honest, I don’t have to sit here and defend myself,” said the England skipper. “I’ve played this game for a lot of years.

“I’m aware my game has changed slightly over the years, but in my opinion, it’s changed for the better. Everyone is entitled to their opinions, but the opinions that matter to me are the opinions of my coaches and my team-mates.”

If Rooney proves as adept at hitting back at Russia’s defenders this evening, England could find themselves celebrating a winning start to their Euro 2016 campaign.

The fact that so much of yesterday’s pre-match briefing revolved around Rooney was fitting because for all that things have moved on under Roy Hodgson, and for all that tonight’s game will see up to six players making their tournament debut in an England shirt, the skipper remains the cog around which all else revolves.

As the last warm-up game against Portugal proved, Hodgson starts with Rooney’s name on the team sheet, and then fits everything else around it.

Tonight, the 30-year-old is likely to find himself playing in the hole behind Harry Kane – not quite the defensive midfield role in which he ended the season at Old Trafford, but hardly the rampaging attacking position that he filled when he burst onto the scene at Euro 2004 in Portugal either.

He is a much less explosive player now, less able to burst beyond an opponent and barnstorm his way into the box. But his game has acquired more subtlety and, as his ferocious strike against Australia in last month’s friendly at the Stadium of Light proved, he still knows how to score.

Plenty of fans and commentators would leave him out of the England team, but as a talisman and leader, his presence remains invaluable. For all that Kane ended last season as the Premier League’s leading goalscorer, it will be Rooney that will be the focus of much of Russia’s attention in tonight’s Group B opener.

“I’ve changed my game slightly over the years,” he said. “I’ve seen players, and played with players who have changed what they did and become better players, and that’s natural.

“I’ve played in midfield for the last few months at United, and it’s a natural way of football. It happens. I feel that with my football intelligence, I can play there and further my career there as well.”

But can he contribute to an England team that actually does itself justice at a major finals? You have to go back to Rooney’s debut tournament 12 years ago to find the last time an England side impressed in the group stages to a sufficient enough extent that they were considered potential winners, and even now, it is hard not to wonder what might have been had the then Everton striker not injured his ankle.

A lot has happened since then, with Rooney’s individual struggles at major tournaments having mirrored England’s collective failings. Will things be any different this time around?

“My ambition, and the team’s ambition for this tournament, is to do as well as we can and try to win it,” said Rooney. “We believe we have a good squad.

“You need a bit of luck in tournament football, but we believe we have the quality to do really well in this tournament. We’re excited it’s beginning, and we want to get going now.”

Rooney is clearly relishing being the father-figure of the squad, and with so many inexperienced players having travelled to France, the 30-year-old’s know-how could prove crucial.

He has presided over a number of team meetings at England’s Chantilly training base, and has been urging his team-mates to play without fear when they take to the field tonight. Rather than worrying about what they have to lose, Rooney has been urging his fellow England players to think about the glories they could gain.

“You can play without fear, and naturally younger lads tend to do that,” he said. “I did it when I broke into the team in 2003, so it’s a case of the manager, coaching staff and myself telling the players how good they are.

“We have a really talented group of players, and we need them to believe that themselves – that they’re good enough to go out there and do it.

“You can see the confidence, ambition and desire in the players, and that’s great to see. We’ll give our best. Whether that’s good enough remains to be seen, but we’ll be as ready as we can be. This tournament could be a big moment for England, and for this group of players.”