England out of Euro 2016: 'We were embarrassing,' says Rooney - but I'm staying on

Rooney, who looked visibly distraught as he left the Stade de Nice, said the players had to shoulder a substantial amount of blame

Rooney said that Hodgson had addressed the players as a group and told them he was leaving (GETTY)

England captain Wayne Rooney said on Monday night that the nation’s exit from the European Championships at the hands of Iceland was “embarrassing” but that he wants to stay on in the side, after Roy Hodgson’s resignation.

Rooney, who looked visibly distraught as he left the Stade de Nice, said the players had to shoulder a substantial amount of blame and that England’s biggest football humiliation of all time could be laid not only at Roy Hodgson’s door

“It is a hard one to take. It is embarrassing,” Rooney said after the 2-1 defeat. “We know we are a better team. You can’t explain it by saying we could have done this or that. We tried to create chances but unfortunately we couldn’t win.”

Asked if he intended to continue as an England player, 30-year-old Rooney said: “Of course, I’ve said before the tournament and I’ve been asked many times but I’m proud to play for England and I’ll see who the next manager is and if selected I’m available to play.”

Gareth Southgate, who recently won the Toulon tournament with England’s under-20s is a strong contender to replace Hodgson, with technical director Dan Ashworth thought to prefer as British successor. The new manager will have to be satisfied that Rooney, moved into midfield by Hodgson at the start of this tournament, is worth his place.

Rooney said that Hodgson had addressed the players as a group and told them he was leaving, before announcing his resignation with pre-prepared notes. “We appreciate what he’s done for us, he has given a lot of players their England debuts and you can’t forget that,” Rooney said. “Of course, we are the ones on the pitch and you can’t just say it is RH’s fault or one player’s fault. We are all in it together and we all have to share that responsibility.

Asked if younger players in the squad needed protection from the criticism that will follow, Rooney said: “I think they just need to keep their heads down. It will hurt for a while of course, the players understand that. You have to bounce back, that is your job, but each player is different, some.”

Joe Hart, who was at fault for Iceland’s second goal and indecisive for the first, said: “Personally I didn't perform.

"It's not a question of wanting it, there's nothing we want more. They are just words though. We were in a good place but we haven't done it. We will get a lot of flak and we deserve it. We will learn from this and try and bring English football back to where it belongs.

"We have put it in a low place. We just couldn't find a way back into the game. The next manager has a tough job on his hands. We worked hard but with no success. That is how this team will be remembered. We had a good chance of going through and after such a good start we let in two really sloppy goals. We are disappointed and sad.”

In a statement, the Football Association said: “We had high hopes of progressing through to the latter stages of the competition and accept that we have not met our own expectations or those of the country. We back Roy Hodgson’s decision to step down as England manager and will discuss next steps imminently.”