Ever since Wayne Rooney emerged on to the football scene as a teenager there has been a lot of hype surrounding him. It started with the Everton fans. They might remember a cheeky 11 year old ball boy who chipped Neville Southall in the warm up before the Merseyside derby back in 1996, who went on to play a pivotal role for the youth team. He scored eight goals in as many games in Everton’s trip to the Youth Cup Final back in 2002, and went on to score that goal against Arsenal in the Premiership just a few months later. “Remember the name, Wayne Rooney” the commentator boomed.
Next it was the England fans who ranted and raved over the youngster. He became the youngest player to represent England in 2003, beating the record which had been set in 1879, and is the youngest player to ever score for the country. He really made his mark on the international stage during Euro 2004 when finishing the team’s highest scorer, bagging two goals in the first game against Switzerland in a 3-0 win, and another two in the following 4-2 victory over Croatia. England’s hopes were dashed when he was injured early on in the quarter finals against Portugal. Without the 18 year old on the park, the England players’ heads went down, and they ended up getting knocked out on penalties (for a change).
When he signed for United, it was our turn to get the bragging rights on the talented youngster. We had to wait a month before we could see him in our shirt whilst he recovered from the injury he’d picked up in the Euros, but it was certainly worth it. In his debut, Rooney bagged a hatrick in our Champions League game against Fenerbahce, marking the start of what looked to be a great career.
Since then, United fans haven’t been able to rate him highly enough. His failure to replicate his club form for country has seen him face criticism from football fans in England, claiming he is overrated, but the lad has been hugely influential in his time with United. Whilst his influence usually can be backed up by stats as well (4th highest scorer in the league with the 3rd highest amount of assists for the past two seasons), it is the impact he makes which can’t be measured that I rate more. He raises the game of the rest of the players on the park by just being there, which was seen most recently at Villa Park when he was subbed on in the FA Cup. He has fighting spirit and a passion unmatched by most players, which trickles through to the rest of the team. He always wants to play, he always wants to score and he always wants to win. With Rooney on the field, winning certainly happens more often than not. Our three league defeats this season, which have come against City, Bolton and West Ham, were all without involvement from Rooney.
Over the past few weeks, we have seen a different side to Rooney. Whilst as usual his passion and effort can not be faltered, he is struggling to find his spark, as well as the back of the net. He’s scored just twice in his past eleven games, despite having a handful of great opportunities in each game. He is too often trying to do the clever thing, the most skilful thing, the most impressive thing, rather than just getting the job done. How many times in recent weeks have we seen Rooney try to chip the keeper from fifteen yards instead of just put his foot through the ball? He is doing unnecessary things to impress, rather than just doing what he does best, relying on his power and accuracy.
As I’ve said though, it’s his game outside of the stats which can and should be praised, and I believe he’s still making a positive impact despite not scoring, but it raises a good question over why he is going through this current patch. To begin with, Ronaldo has been stealing all the headlines, and rightly so, after currently enjoying a sublime season. He can’t be praised enough for the effect he’s having for United at the moment, with his two goals last night making his goals tally 27 in as many games. The last time a United player was doing the business in such a way was Ruud van Nistelrooy back in 2003, but I wonder if even that can be compared to Ronaldo. After 27 games in that season, Ruud had (just) 20 goals to his name, and as an out and out striker, a goal poacher, you’d expect him to beat Ronaldo hands down.
Is Rooney feeling the pressure of living in Ronaldo’s shadow? In terms of age and ability, Rooney is the only player in our side who can be compared to Ronaldo, and whilst not much is made of that in the press, it is a possibility that Rooney is making the comparison himself. Any player in the World who compared themselves to Ronaldo at the moment would get an inferiority complex though, and it shouldn’t be something that Rooney should pay too much attention to.
Another answer could be the pressure Rooney is feeling under Capello’s watchful eye. The new England manager has been making an effort to watch every United game since being appointed and Rooney of course will be eager to impress. With the captain’s arm band up for grabs as well, Rooney will believe he’s in with a shout of that. After getting Fergie to back down and let him captain United for their trip to Rome in the Champions League this season, after months of begging, it is clear Rooney sees himself as captain material. With less than impressive recent England form (discounting the goals he scored in consecutive games against Estonia and Russia in Euro 2008 qualifiers), Rooney will want to show the new England manager what he is capable of.
After watching Rooney play against Aston Villa, Capello said, “it was good to be at a game where a lot of the players were English players. And of course to see a player like Wayne Rooney come on as a substitute in such good form and have a major impact on the game was good for me on my first day.” Since then, Rooney has failed to impress as much as he would have liked when Capello has travelled to watch us play.
Equally, Rooney could just be going through a rut, with there being no psychological effects of Ronaldo or Capello making a difference to his game. Whatever it is, a goal to his name, whether it be for club or country, could certainly do the trick to return Rooney to the goalscoring form we’ve been accustomed to. However, there is no doubt that Rooney has always had huge expectation to live up to, whether that is from the fans of Everton, England or United, and at the moment, he is struggling to do that.
Rooney has today been picked, along with Ferdinand, Brown, Hargreaves and Carrick, in Capello’s 30 man squad ahead of the friendly England are set to play on Ferbuary 6th, and hopefully he can get the performance he needs.
What’s up with Wayne?
Man Utd News 24/7
fab article. raises alot of good points. whatever is holding wazza back, i hope he can work through it. he is a star and there’s no reason for him to feel but that and get out there and shake off these past few weeks
I made a similar post at RedsUnite.com and echoed those sentiments in the forums here. I was summarily told that I should never question the greatness of Wayne Rooney. You must admit that there is a fair amount of kool-aid drinking from you Brits when it comes to Wayne Rooney. He is the infallible golden sun of England who can do no wrong. Now, at least, it is nice to see my argument has the support of someone.
Here’s a link to the article:
http://redsunite.com/2008/01/13/united-daily-talking-sht-about-a-pretty-sunset/
Funny, but it’s the thing that I’m always thinking when I watch United play and I believe that Rooney surely compares himself to Ronaldo. He only needs one or two goals and an injury free period and everything will be ok. Whatever it is, he is the most important player for United.
I’ve suggested before that Wayne could benefit from a sports psychologist. I don’t know if they are used in the EPL, but many sports professionals benefit from their use. I know it sounds “new age”, and a bit poncey, but why not add another weapon to the arsenal (no pun intended). A sports psychologist can be just as important a part of the organization as a physio.
I think this is a fair article. Im not sure wots up with rooney either tbh but you can still see his impact on the pitch, and notably off the pitch. When he doesnt play it seems like our only hope is ronaldo playing good which he always cant (the westham game comes to mind). but wen he does play it seems like goals come from every which way. Lets just hope they start coming his way cos hes a world class talent and maybe if more people start to acknowledge that he’ll start living up to the challenge.
Nothing’s wrong with Wayne.He will delivered to us CL trophy ‘cos he’s our man for big matches.Ronaldo is maybe the greates player in world in moment.But when The Big Ones come-he allways failed to delliver.Allways.
In Premier League nobody expect from Ronaldo to be The Best ‘ cos he’s The Best.
In CL-the whole world expect from him a miricale….and he failed to delivered …….
Wayne…..he’s natural-born fighter.Keane-Cantona material.ManU material.Build to last….and to delivered CL trophy to us.
I’m from mediterian region, Ronaldo the same….the same thing that connecting mediterian people is the complex not to succeed.That’s why he feel relief when he scores the goal….cos he know he’s The Best but he knows that someone is The Best in fields that he can’t imagine that exist.He’s name is Wayne Rooney.
Great article. In all other rants if anybody question Rooney they are being slamed, so I am happy that other people can see the problem. I believe that presure form Ronaldo’s great form can be the reason and I believ as a great player Rooney should get over it. And Sympathy your comment makes no sense. Our best player for a while has been and will be Ronaldo. If Rooney is Keane-Contana quility, which he hasn’t proved yet, then Ronaldo is Ziddane-Figo quility, which I believe he already proved.
Fantastic article. I think Man U fans all over the globe must be nodding away while reading. I was discussing with another friend the other day about Rooney and Ronaldo playing together. I do not know whether you guys agree with me but the main role of a midfielder is to support the strikers in attack. Strikers have to get in the box and score the goals. In recent games, Rooney seems to be played out of position when Ronaldo dribbles the ball into the middle of the park. Instead of moving into the box, Rooney will drift out. If you observe the first goal scored against Pompey, Rooney was free at the far post. Ronaldo took a difficult shot that could have been blocked by David James. Credit to him for scoring but the easier option would be squaring it for Rooney to tap in. This is just one of the many situations that I’ve observed this season. Of course Rooney’s course is not helped by the many injuries suffered. But I believe the main reason is due to the lack of support from the wingers. Man U’s traditional expansive play has been kind of disrupted by Ronaldo’s propensity to dribble the ball into the middle, causing major congestion, and also his desire to score. Maybe too much has been made about his scoring records. I sincerely hope that Ferguson would try to place a wager with Ronaldo on the no. of assists he make over this season.
Having said that, I really appreciate Ronaldo in the red jersey and all his match winners this season. However, I hope that he can become a better player by being able to create more than he score, because on his off-day, as we have seen against Reading a couple of weeks back, it might just cost us the 3 pts and maybe even the title.
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I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that Rooney does compare himself to Ronaldo, since Rooney is demonstrably a born competitor who wants to be the best, and often tries too hard to be the best, rather than doing the average thing. However, I tend to concur with many other commentators inasmuch as whilst Rooney’s overall contribution to the team remains so positive, his position should not be threatened in any way.
United fans should just feel blessed to watch the two play in tandem, as well as by the fact that no brooding jealousy exists between the two, since such feelings can hurt team spirit (see the Ronaldinho/Eto’o problems).
Didn’t we see this side of Rooney about this time last year too? Before he went off on a scoring run and finished with as many goals as Ronaldo?
He’s clearly a confidence player and once he grabs a few goals he’ll be banging them in all the time. Fact is, though, that he’ll always play for the team so even if his finishing is off – he’ll still be committing himself 100% to the cause. His workrate is second to none and he must be commended for that – but he really needs to get into a goal scoring groove.
I think that James’ point about Ronaldo’s “wing-less” play is pertintent; but so, too, is the complementary point (not made) that neither Rooney nor Tevez plays an “orthodox” style of central -striker role.
To my way of thinking, it’s important to give up on these older notions of fixed positions and watch the play evolve in a more free-flowing fashion – I like to think of it as a “whirligig” style.
And, I think that this is exactly what SAF had in mind when he jettisoned the best “orthodox striker” in the world for peanuts. Ruud has been fantastic for Real Madrid but he had become a problem for the “NewUtd” – not so much surplus-to-requirements as a distraction since he demanded that the other forwards/midfielders funnel the ball to him inside the box.
That was then, this is now – this new team is playing a new style and it’s bloody entertaining. And, it’s still just a work in progress and so far I’m really enjoying the ride.
I think that if Wayne stays healthy then we will seem his strike rate improve as he blends into this new style.
The key thinig for Rooney is to stay injury-free and to find his groove. His constant injuries, rehabilitations, and returning to match-readiness have clearly blunted his overall development. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the bad times are over for TheBoyWonder and that we will see him evolve into another special player.
I’m sorry guys, don’t all jump on me please, but Wayne’s 1st touch is abysmal. He has so much difficulty bringing a ball under control with first touch. This is the area he needs to improve. Also, I believe it is not just Wayne, but all the forwards and midfielders at Utd who are trying to be Ronaldo. Doing the fancy dan stuff, instead of the simple but effective stuff. I think Nani has a marvelous touch and insight, in his passes to cut thru packed defences. His dinked chip for Ronaldo’s first goal against Pompi was superb. He made many such delicate passes in the game. He doesn’t lose the ball much, nor does Anderson really, but Wayne does, and thats because he doesn’t have a good first touch in controlling the ball. But he has so many other brilliant apects to his game, that you can’t leave him out.
I have made simmilar commnets about “wazza” but I have failed to get answers, why does’nt Rooney just shoot at goal than trying to score “exotic” goals and that is why Ronaldo is stealing the show off him I wonder what SAF tells him after the match, he should be left on bench so he can learn from Tevez and Ronaldo
craig, look at rooney’s touch which won the penalty against spurs. quite incredible.
rooney needs an injury free spell. i’m glad england are out of the euros, should give him more time to rest. he’s had serious injury problems for one so young.
somebody made the point of using sports psychologists. i think that is very valid. especially for rooney, since he is obviously a confidence player. i assumed sports psychologists would be used at united, but if they aren’t, they definitely should be consulted.
one thing about ronaldo is that he has tremendous mental strength. rooney, i am not totally sure about.
Why is everyone trying to draw a comparison with Rooney and Ronaldo? I don’t hear many Barcelona fans arguing too much about having Ronaldinho and Messi in the same line-up. They also have Eto’o, Henry and Deco. We have Tevez, Scholes and then two of Giggs/Nani and Hargreaves/Anderson. It doesn’t get better than this – as long as we are scoring goals (and Ronaldo’s doing that all by himself at the moment), it means the front six are all playing their part – and Rooney is doing just fine in his role and will be the cornerstone for both club and country for many years to come. Our team is busier now than in 1999. Scholes and Giggs are still with us (and Neville?) but the only other players from our treble year who would get into today’s squad are Scmeichel, Keane and Beckham. Imagine that…!
Excellent article, I also believe Rooney has put a bit of weight on. In a pre season match against Inter Milan he was lightening quick, since then I haven’t seen that sharpness. Rooney does get chances in games and he should do much better. I believe in any team you have one superstar. Real Madrid did not work when there were so many superstars, we can see the same happening at Barcelona. Ronaldo is our superstar. Rooney needs to come good, I think he will though I hope it will be this season.
i have to comment… first touch abysaml.. try telling that to dawson when he handled…although i do conceede that sometimes the ball inexplicably runs away from him..and he does miss some easy ones. It’s probable that the boy that was world young player of the year is failing to understand why ronaldo is moving past him with what is clearly inferior pure football ability (but greater pace and power). Its ok rooney these are the characteristics that win all the matches united usually play except the two or three really important ones against the best.. playing their best and as all united fans know thats why we wanted u so badly and would hate missing u far more than ronaldo. (he’s pretty good 2 though)
Good article…I for some time have been wondering what’s going on with Rooney and this article I believe has summed it up. But it’s ok. It’s only a confidence crisis. Once he gets back his confidence he’ll be a world class player just like last season and the seasons before. i think Fergie has done the right job telling the press that Rooney is going to go on a scoring spree soon that is only going to boost his confidence. Let’s see the match against spurs today. Hopefully we’ll see a different Rooney.
Wayne Rooney should never be questioned. When he plays United never lose; enough said. He might not be banging them in at the moment but his committment, work rate, determination and all round brilliance is a reason why united are on a winning streak since he has returned from injury and illness..He will easily reach 20 goals this season, and in my opinion that isnt bad for a guy who missed 10 games in the league this season.