Wayne Rooney

[manc grecian]

I have and Everton have. Its good to sit back and reflect on how wrong everyone can be. We have a much better team without him in it.

 

[Poultice]

Spot on Manc, and may I say put with both a passion and a lucidity seldom found in such a place.

 

[exeips]

Great article abouth the boy wonder stolen from the Everton forum that I frequent.

It's now nearly three years since Terry from Tunbridge Wells; Nigel in Northampton and seemingly everybody from The Daily Mirror were telling us that Wayne Rooney should leave Everton and move to a 'bigger club'.


'He needs to play with better players'; 'he needs more experience of playing in European football'; 'he needs to be under the stewardship of Alex Ferguson to improve his discipline'; 'a boy of his quality needs to be playing every week' etc. etc.

Okay, so they all got their wishes, but why did they want it in the first place? And what's actually happened to the boy since?

Well, they say it was because they wanted Rooney to progress as a footballer; be a better player for England and therefore mean England would win trophies. So let's take a look at what's actually happened…

We sold a boy who was, even at that time, probably the most exciting, talented and highly-rated footballer on the planet. He scored goals, he created goals, and above everything else he literally made you shake your head in disbelief. He played football like we all played it in our dreams - wild tackles, last minute winners, stunning volleys and taking the **** out of defenders at will. He was also one of us. He was ours.

So, three years on, he's still not scored a competitive goal for England as a United player, he's not scored a Champions League goal since his debut, and apart from against Bolton has hardly scored a league goal this year. Certainly not what Nigel in Northampton was expecting, was it? And certainly not the kid we let go thinking he was going to rival Pele, Maradonna and Angell as the game's greats.

When we sold Rooney, Chelsea were the new force of English football, and I thought the only way United would win the title in the coming years would be because of Rooney himself. However, in many ways they'll win the league this year in spite of him.

So, what's happened? He's playing with better players. He's playing in Europe. He's with the great Alex Ferguson and he's playing every week at the 'biggest club in the world'. He's f*cking changed. That's what.

You try moving from a small house in Croccy, surrounded by your friends and family, to a four storey mansion in Prestbury surrounded by c*cks. As far as I'm concerned he's lost that hunger and freedom that made him the player he was. He's certainly not one of us anymore. If indeed he ever was.

It's just like Rocky in Rocky III, when he gets 'too comfortable' living in his own wealthy bubble, gets webbed everywhere by Clubber Lang, and then has to go back to his roots to find that devilment he's since lost. The eye of the tiger.

He's now getting played both left and right midfield, as well as even up front on his own. They never rest him and his discipline has hardly improved under Sir Alex, has it? Sent off at Villarreal; fighting in Panacea, Manchester; throwing black arm bands on the floor as well as bust ups with half the England playing and management staff.

When you see Wayne Rooney, what do you think? And more specifically, what do you remember? For me, I don't remember the last minute winner against Villa, the pandemonium after the Arsenal goal or the pitch invasion at Leeds. I see a fat little knobhead kissing his Manc badge at every opportunity, joining in 'anti sScouse' sing- songs with his teammates and belittling the help he's gained from Colin Harvey, David Moyes, et al, along the way. I also see a footballer who is a shadow of his former self - and he's only f*cking 21.

For many selfish and loyal reasons us Evertonians believed that Rooney should have stayed here for longer than the fifty or so games he 'granted' us. It now seems that three years on the main reason why he actually should have stayed at Everton was to improve himself as a football player and as an individual. Since leaving Everton he's not moved on, on either front.

He's obviously still a very good footballer and he'll probably pick up bucket loads of money and even trophies at United, but the simple fact remains that he's nowhere near as good as he should have been. And to that, I raise my pint of Chang, kiss my Everton badge and knowingly smile.

3 years on and the way he has been playing this season I guess Rooney did make the right move.

Poults, would you still prefer Nugent over Rooney?

 

[Hants_red]

So who does he play for now?

 

[Poultice]

Poults, would you still prefer Nugent over Rooney?

No, next question.

 

[Mackster]

No, next question.

Bobby Z, the new Nugent.

Bookmark the Bobby Z thread for exhumation in 2012