Every United fan wishes him the best.
Every football fan will undeniably say that they’ve experienced moments that gave them goosebumps and made the hairs on the back of their necks stand up. In terms of Wayne Rooney’s career, cast your mind back to that Champions League tie against Fenerbahce.
Power, bravado, skill, talent and a little bit of an ego were all prevalent as the world’s hottest talent announced himself to the Stretford End faithful.
13 years later, the Everton supporter is back at Goodison Park after winning everything there is to win at Old Trafford.
This being said, United’s record goalscorer obviously values certain medals and trophies higher than others because he doesn’t regard his own contribution towards the club’s recent League Cup and Europa League wins.
Speaking with The Telegraph, he said: “It was just a frustrating time. The hardest thing was lifting the two trophies – the League Cup and the Europa League. You don’t feel like you [deserve it] because you haven’t been part of the game. That was hard to do; you’re naturally happy because you have won but you don’t celebrate it as much. It is just frustrating if you are not playing. The lads who play were having two-day recovery sessions while all the lads who were on the bench and not in the squad were training together, so you’re not really training with the first team.”
Sir Alex Ferguson famously dropped Rooney for United’s Champions League knock-out tie against Real Madrid in 2013 – and while certain people were predicting that this moment would be the end for the England striker at Old Trafford – he went on to lift more trophies at the club.
However, after struggling to start under Mourinho, the striker knew when his time was up.
“It was around November I knew [I’d be leaving]. I spoke to Jose in January to see what his opinions were and he always said he wanted me to stay and help the team until the end of the season. I did that. I helped in the games he put me in but I knew I had to leave to move forward for my career. It was a sad moment because I had been at the club for 13 years but I had to think of my career as well.
Regarding the specific game that settled any lingering doubts about staying, Rooney clarified the decision: “I started the season doing OK. I had a bad game at Watford away and that was it. He started with me as a No 10 with Zlatan up front but then he changed the system a little and the lads who came in did well. He stuck with that. That’s his decision and I respect him as a person, as a manager. I understand managers have to make decisions but I also have to make decisions for my career.”
During his time at Old Trafford, Rooney’s career has been memorable. Everton fans will be hoping that his signing can usher in a period where there club are challenging for trophies.
