"England can be one of the favourites to win the World Cup," said Alberto, captain of Brazil's 1970 winning side. "They have very good players and a good team. I don't know how the coach will face the problem of Rooney but England have good experience." But the ex-Azerbaijan coach said the fitness of Michael Owen was key. Alberto said "it would be a very big problem" if England were without both Rooney and Owen. Like Rooney, Owen is recovering from a broken foot, but is making good progress and is expected to be fit for the tournament, which starts on 9 June. Alberto was coach of Azerbaijan when England played the Asian nation in the qualifying stages. "This is the best English national team I have seen since 1966"- Carlos Alberto Parreira Brazil coach