Rooneys farewell drives Wembley ticket rush

The Football Association has sold more than 20,000 tickets for England’s friendly against the United States since former captain Wayne Rooney’s one-off international comeback was confirmed, an FA spokeswoman said on Tuesday.

Rooney, England’s record scorer with 53 goals, is expected to be brought on as a substitute to claim his 120th cap in the charity game at Wembley on Thursday.

Rooney’s involvement has led to a late rush for tickets over the past week, with an attendance of about 60,000 now predicted.

The charity match will raise funds for the Wayne Rooney Foundation, which aims to improve the lives of disadvantaged children.

“Looking forward to meeting up with the @England squad later today, always a huge honour. An exciting week for @FoundationWR!,” Rooney wrote on Twitter before joining Gareth Southgate’s squad on Monday.

Rooney, who began his career at Everton, spent 13 seasons at Manchester United.

After a season back at Everton, he moved to the United States to join D.C. United, helping them to the MLS playoffs in his first campaign.

Southgate is expected to give his first-choice players some rest against the United Stated ahead of a Nations League clash against Croatia on Sunday.