England manager Roy Hodgson has described Wayne Rooney's leg injury as an "enormous blow" ahead of next month's World Cup qualifiers.

The striker was ruled out for a month after he received a gash on his leg during Manchester United's 3-2 win over Fulham on Saturday.

"It's a great pity to lose Wayne," Hodgson told Sky Sports News. "Obviously we were counting on him, relying on him, and the injury of course comes as an enormous blow not only to Manchester United and us but of course to the player himself because I'm certain he was looking forward to getting off to a good start this season."

Hodgson will name his squad for the matches against Ukraine and Moldova on Thursday.