Chelsea defender Gary Cahill has praised England teammate Wayne Rooney for his intelligence on the football field.

Cahill claimed that due to Rooney's football smarts, the Manchester United star is extremely hard to defend.

Of the 29-year-old, who on Tuesday night became England's leading goal scorer when he netted for the 50th time internationally, Cahill said: "It's tough playing against him, he's a winner no matter if it's in training or games.

"He brings quality and for me it is his intelligence – he makes good runs.

"But one of his strengths and the most awkward thing playing against him is that he can find space, these little pockets where he drops off and you don't know whether or not to go tight to him.

"That shows real intelligence in his play. We know what he can do, he needs no introduction and we've seen it over the years with his finishing and all round game.

"He's a top player. Sometimes you take people for granted when they've been around for so long, but he is still at a young age compared to what he has done in the game.

"By the time he finishes his career, if you put down on a piece of paper all his achievements then I'm sure that will go down as legendary, not just for England but for his club, too."