an eighth reflection...'rooney: the best team player in the premier league?'

In early 2-3 months of the 2013/14 season, Wayne Rooney – the White Pele,  the charging Baby Elephant, or so it used to be– has for the most part been lauded by domestic pundits for his supposed ‘return to form’. 

BBC football journalist, Garth Crooks, recently joined their number, including Rooney in BBC Sport’s team of the week for several weeks running while Manchester United’s equally over-praised revival took something approaching-but-falling-short-of-shape. 

Crooks, at least on two occasions, described Rooney as ‘the best team player in the Premier League’, a claim that goes some way to showing statistics can lie, and motives can perhaps deceive.

For Rooney is the player, that in spite of having a strong assist record, not to mention six league goals this year, as well as an active heat map (pitch coverage) this term, is also the same player who spent the majority of 2012/13 sulking because Sir Alex Ferguson would not play him in his favoured position of centre forward - instead preferring him wide-left in a 4-3-3 cum 4-5-1, so as to give United a semblance of balance - or in the centre of midfield - an area where United have been sorely lacking since the demise of Darren Fletcher.

 

Moreover, Rooney’s reaction to the arrival of Robin Van Persie, who in his first fifteen months at the club has gone some way to rivalling the impact of Eric Cantona, did not speak of a player with a utilitarian consideration of his team.  Rooney was more concerned for himself, and his self-assumed role as Bertie Big Potato (with hair, or lack of it, to match), than the greater good.

For United fans this was even more galling since, again, Rooney was and remains in the minds of many a Red, the same player who was prepared, it seemed, to move to Manchester City for what he had decided was Manchester United’s lack of ambition in the transfer market only as far back as 2010.

Indeed, Rooney’s selfish past is now limiting David Moyes’ tactical options: after all it is clear to see United need Rooney to play wide left, or partner Jones in the middle in Carrick’s absence (and in the absence of any other plausible options) until the midfield is reinvigorated, except Moyes won’t use Rooney in anything other than his favourite position for risk of upsetting the player, even though this means sticking to a rigid, and largely ineffective 4-4-2. 

And yet, all of a sudden Rooney has apparently rejuvenated, and what a surprise in World Cup year!  Rooney is, it has to be acknowledged, a player whose heavy physique and lack of professionalism off the pitch - especially for a ‘team player’ on 200k+ a week - will more than likely limit the length of his career at the top level to perhaps two, or three more years; a player for whom Brazil represents a last chance for genuine personal glory. 

Meanwhile, Manchester United’s abject performance against Cardiff, a dogged, but ultimately mediocre side in first tier terms, on Sunday, provided further evidence that Rooney’s chances of more silverware with United to adorn his very own trophy cabinet will be few and far between before his time is up.

But if Rooney is after a move away, this perhaps another reason for his rediscovered application, which team worth their proverbial salt would risk spending big money (and United will demand nothing less) on a player who wantonly kicks out at an opponent five minutes in to an important away league fixture, and risk a sending off that could jeopardise his team? Or, more to the point, which player other than a hot-headed, self-absorbed, team liability?

On Twitter Rooney describes himself as a Nike Athlete rather than associate himself with the Manchester United team he is supposed to be such a keen part, telling for the want away, want all for himself mercenary he really is today.