ALAN Shearer has blasted Sven-Goran Eriksson's handling of England striker Jermain Defoe during Wednesday night's 4-1 friendly defeat in Denmark.

Eriksson hauled Defoe off at half-time, despite his replacement, Michael Owen, being suspended for England's crucial World Cup qualifier in Wales at the start of next month.

While Defoe's absence hardly explained England's capitulation after the break, the raft of second-half changes undoubtedly contributed to the side's second-half collapse.

David James and Glen Johnson both struggled in the face of some concerted Danish attacking, while Newcastle midfielder Jermaine Jenas was given just six minutes in which to press his claims for a starting spot.

"I was a bit mystified with how Jermain Defoe was handled to be honest," said Shearer, who retired from international football in the wake of Euro 2000.

"I am sure he was disappointed he only played for one half, but I guess you would have to ask the manager why that happened.

"If I was to play Defoe, I would have been looking for 90 minutes from him, especially as he is probably going to start up front with Wayne Rooney for the Wales game.

"And my Newcastle team-mate Jermaine Jenas only got six minutes - he has picked up another cap, but he is not going to learn much from it, especially when his team are 3-0 down.

"I do not know what the mentality is to friendlies in this England set-up, but they are not proper games when you are changing five or six people around at a time.

"There is a definite argument for just having a training camp instead of playing a game at all, but I am sure the manager would disagree."

Shearer was as disappointed as anyone at England's capitulation in the second half, but highlighted the all-action display of Wayne Rooney as one of the few plus points to have emerged from the Danish capital.

"He is becoming massively important to England now," said the Newcastle skipper. "Even at his age. He is a fantastic player and there will be a lot of hopes on his shoulders in the World Cup.

"There is a lot of expectation on him, but I do not think it bothers him. I think he gets better the more pressure is put on him. That is the way he seems to play."

* Newcastle midfielder Emre has been ruled out tomorrow's home game with West Ham.

The summer signing injured his hamstring and limped out of Turkey's 3-1 defeat to Bulgaria on Wednesday night.

The former Inter Milan star also faces a race against time to be fit for next Wednesday's trip to Bolton.

l Fredi Kanoute has no fears about adapting his game to the Spanish league after completing his £4.4m transfer to Sevilla from Tottenham.

The 27-year-old Mali international, the subject of 11th hour interest from Newcastle, has agreed a four-year deal with the Primera Liga club, who recently sold striker Julio Baptista to Real Madrid.

''I aim to adapt to football here as quickly as possible and I don't think I will have any problems,'' said Kanoute. ''What I will do now is work for the team. It's impossible to say how many goals I will score but I want to work for the team which is more important.''

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