In our last two Premier League games I've heard the commentator talk about how Rooney can play anywhere, and it's quite common to hear this, but the simple fact is that he can't. Not to the standard we require, anyway. He's decent defensively, especially for a striker, which is presumably the only reason people say this. He doesn't know how to play the midfield role properly and he's wasted the further away from goal he gets
10
Season Average Rating
- Appearances
- 37
- Goals
- 14
- Assists
- 6
- Yellow cards
- 4
- Red cards
- 1
- Status
It's simple really, he is just an awful passer of the ball, the only passes that look good are those long ones to the right, his biggest preference is Valencia, but those passes are so easily read and often hit so that the receiver has to stand still to get it, take it down and build up speed after that and that just takes too much time to come to anything.
Should be played upfront but only by default (as our other strikers are poo) , all though we should simply have a better allround player than the current Rooney in our starting line-up.
Should be played upfront but only by default (as our other strikers are poo) , all though we should simply have a better allround player than the current Rooney in our starting line-up.
I'm absolving him from all blame for this idiocy. He'll be in goals by Easter. Lunacy.
I fail to see how. He is not a midfielder!
One thing that annoys me is the constant crap said by the British commentators "We know that Wayne Rooney can play any position..." no, he can't. I mean anyone can play there if they are forced to but he doesn't play it adequately. He is a striker FFS.
and watch him playing striker and being awful.. He is better as striker tho but in the two strikers system quite useless. He would need to see somone pacy like Wilson next to him but that will never happen because we would need to bench both Falcao and RVP.
Van Gaal also said in the early stage of the season that Rooney's best position is as CAM, and I agree with that just because we played with fellaini two good games and than he got injured he decided for no reason to drop rooney deeper to get "muscles" and balance there. Such a BS from old man.
IMO Rooney should play as CAM in this system - that is the last position he can play for us. If we switch to 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 than may he play as striker not as a 10 where technical ability is needed and what he really lacks. Right now as ten he is good option because he still has got some energy about him and can press the defenders up front unlike very slow mata, and actually can do some job defending but not that much when he plays deep like now and make good runs to the box in which he is very good as well as shooting from distance which he sadly don't show at all as he's getting old..
At this rate he's going to end up being De Gea's replacement.
Watching him play in midfield was as bad as seeing Jesus suffer in The Passion of the Christ. This madness has to stop soon.
Has Sir Bobby ordered Van Gaal to make sure that Rooney must not come near his goalscoring record or what?
Has Sir Bobby ordered Van Gaal to make sure that Rooney must not come near his goalscoring record or what?
Found these links on Facebook group:
http://imgur.com/a/rf7Zc
Not trying to defend Falcao. Rooney is very negative in midfield and seemingly the only forward pass is his infamous diagonal which every full back reads.
http://imgur.com/a/rf7Zc
Not trying to defend Falcao. Rooney is very negative in midfield and seemingly the only forward pass is his infamous diagonal which every full back reads.
The new Vidic?
More like that scene with Monica Bellucci in Irreversible.Watching him play in midfield was as bad as seeing Jesus suffer in The Passion of the Christ. This madness has to stop soon.
Has Sir Bobby ordered Van Gaal to make sure that Rooney must not come near his goalscoring record or what?
looks like he'd be close to offside but ffs worth a pass. he's a striker not a midf.
Fair enough. Just pointing out some very obvious limitations in his abilities as a midfielder.
That was a very tough one to watch too.
I have a sick friend who has what we could call a 'r' section in his extensive DVD library. That is in there along with I Spit on Your Grave, Last House on the Left and other such titles. Oh, and Island of Death, if you've ever seen that low budget shocker.
Well it isn't worth a pass since he is offside. There is no point trying to pass to someone who is offside.
Credit to him for not throwing the dummy out the pram, he's willingly done everything instructed of him, patiently watching over our poor strikers non existent performances and played practically every position on the pitch whilst he really should be chasing Bobby Charlton's record.
I really wanted him to take the penalty instead of Robin Van Persie, I was surprised he didn't.
Nevertheless, I hope this experiment is over, Herrera should be playing if we want a midfielder with balance. Rooney should be #9 at the moment and Mata should be brought back in as #10.
I really wanted him to take the penalty instead of Robin Van Persie, I was surprised he didn't.
Nevertheless, I hope this experiment is over, Herrera should be playing if we want a midfielder with balance. Rooney should be #9 at the moment and Mata should be brought back in as #10.
Midfield or no midfield, since he got the armband he's showing great maturity. Always doing his job without any comments and generally putting in some solid performances even in positions he is not used to playing.
He used to play those passes to Hernandez when they struck a partnership in 2011. Its sad to see him completely castrated of all creativity in his current role.
He is about as creative as Tom Cleverley when played in midfield.
Watching the game again, defensively he did an excellent job. Tracked his runners, pressed players, tackles, interceptions, discipline etc.. were all to a fairly high level but what was very obvious was that the deeper he went, the worse he looked on the ball. When he got the ball he couln't wait to get rid of it and about 90% of the passes went backwards (or so it seemed). I don't understand how Van Gaal can't see this. Like most attacking players, Rooney relies on instinct and his instincts fail him when he's playing so deep. Another fairly obvious observation was the way Herrera and Rooney received passes. Herrera instinctively knows what's around him and hence has more time to pick out the right pass. Rooney doesn't appear to have a clue and hence all those backward passes when he receives posession.
Can't remember the last time Rooney had a shot on target! Yes he is playing in midfield but plenty of midfielders score goals so Rooney can do better than he is showing currently.
The United Scoring record books might not have his name at the top! if his new life in midfield is anything to go by.
The United Scoring record books might not have his name at the top! if his new life in midfield is anything to go by.
Not a midfielder, dont play him there.
Number 10 or as a Striker.
Number 10 or as a Striker.
It's bizarre isn't it? Apparently professional Footballers suddenly lose the ability to play simple 5-10 yard passes, be able to link up with their teammates, can't trap a bag of sand and become thick as pig muck in terms of pass selection merely because they are 40 yards deeper than they'd prefer to be.
If he were up front at the moment we'd be lambasting Van Gaal to move him out wide or to the bench, because on current form every one of our attacks would break down when the ball was played into him, or whenever he tried to link up with his strike partner. I really don't understand why people think that even though he can't make a simple pass in midfield, but he'd suddenly be great further forward linking up with Di Maria, Januzaj and/or RVP.
He's just going through his annual 4-8 weeks of playing like a pub player, which happens regardless of where he plays every season. If he continues to play in this position by March people will be saying "he's finally learning the midfield role", when in actual fact he will have just gotten out of his annual stink.
I bet Rooney is over the moon at the moment, as his crap patch can be blamed on his position. A bit of a get out of jail free card really.
Louis' happy with his midfield performances
I don't see how there is a "problem in midfield". Herrera, Mata, Di Maria, Fellaini, he could even play Pereira since he has given some of the other youngsters some opportunities. They are all actual midfield options. Mata isn't exactly a central midfielder either, but I think he would use the ball better in midfield than Rooney has. Rooney is the midfield problem. He hesitates and hesitates, then just smacks it diagonal, and it's usually too short. He doesn't posses the skill to pick his passes and release the ball quickly. Herrera looked much more effective in that role when he came on.
I don't see how there is a "problem in midfield". Herrera, Mata, Di Maria, Fellaini, he could even play Pereira since he has given some of the other youngsters some opportunities. They are all actual midfield options. Mata isn't exactly a central midfielder either, but I think he would use the ball better in midfield than Rooney has. Rooney is the midfield problem. He hesitates and hesitates, then just smacks it diagonal, and it's usually too short. He doesn't posses the skill to pick his passes and release the ball quickly. Herrera looked much more effective in that role when he came on.
But those quotes confirm that Van Gaal *knows* Rooney is better as a striker, but that he's asking Rooney to sacrifice playing in his best position to help the 'balance of the team'. Rooney is doing this with no complaints, and generally getting stuck into the 'dirty jobs' (hustling, tracking back, blocking, clearing, tackling, etc) - and as I said previously, getting dogs abuse for his trouble.
Maybe we should be lauding his professionalism, unselfishness and versatility.
Van Gaal obviously doesn't see it that way, and playing any of the other options may present their own set of problems, which are 'on balance' worse than the ones we get playing Rooney in that position.
I agree with that. I'm not slagging Rooney off when I criticise his midfield performances. I'm a big fan of him and think he's a great forward, but it's clear that he is way off what he is capable of in this position. I find it worrying that Van Gaal prefers a restricted Rooney over our actual midfield options.
But you're right. Rooney has gone about his duty with no fuss, which is something that wouldn't have happened in previous years, and that's a credit to him. I'd be interested to know if he is happy playing this role, or if he is keeping it under wraps because of his responsibility as the captain. He's said before that he wants to be scoring goals, and I can't imagine that will have changed.
I commend Rooney for doing what the manager tells him and not complaining, being a good captain.
However him playing in midfield is worse than the other options for me, he has already cost us a goal by giving the ball away and almost did again yesterday, and has also done it a few other times.
Its not really a critisim of Rooney tbh, its not his fault, that is where is he being asked to play. The stick should be directed at the manager.
We have underperforming strikers up top, decent midfielders on the bench, and a top class stirker playing in midfield. At no point during that kind of setup (except maybe against Newcastle and first half vs Spurs) has our team looked balanced. Infact I would say we look even more unbalanced now with this setup.
Totally agree with your last statement.
I just find it so worrying Van Gaal sees "balance" with Rooney in the midfield. like I have mentioned in numerous other posts... what is Mata, Fellaini and Herrera thinking when they see these statements? I mean how does Van Gaal still have the dressing room?
4 years ago to the day
I think he reached rock bottom last night. Both he and Herrera seemed to be playing as holding midfielders when Blind went off. Why did it need them both? LVG's "philosophy" and set up to not lose games rather than win them.
Yes, he's showing professionalism, unselfishness, etc. and he's "doing a job". But so is Valencia when he plays right back, yet he continues to play there (though not last night) like Rooney in midfield. How many players remain in the team "doing a job" for LVG, "helping the balance of the team", when there are others who actually play in those positions? Crazy. Rooney slows everything down, all the moves, turning back, shielding the ball, before passing. He is not and never will be a midfield player. He is the cause of all our problems in the style of play.
Stick him back up top with Falcao or Wilson as his partner.
I love Rooney as a striker and because he gives his all, but please Louis not in the midfield!!!
Yes, he's showing professionalism, unselfishness, etc. and he's "doing a job". But so is Valencia when he plays right back, yet he continues to play there (though not last night) like Rooney in midfield. How many players remain in the team "doing a job" for LVG, "helping the balance of the team", when there are others who actually play in those positions? Crazy. Rooney slows everything down, all the moves, turning back, shielding the ball, before passing. He is not and never will be a midfield player. He is the cause of all our problems in the style of play.
Stick him back up top with Falcao or Wilson as his partner.
I love Rooney as a striker and because he gives his all, but please Louis not in the midfield!!!
4 years ago to the day
I remember watching this at Footage in Manchester, felt like the whole place was going to collapse when that happened! great memories.
4 years ago to the day
I miss that Rooney.
4 years ago to the day
He was really quite crap in that game, but then he came out with that. As he jumped up I remember quickly thinking how stupid it was to even attempt it, then it just went into the net. Glorious
At this rate he will end up in the goalkeeping position. Hey atleast we have a replacement for De Gea should he join Madrid. But hey seriously, Way Rooney can play any position. Or something like that.
really - RVP scored in an offside position so did ozil. let the lino make a call. sometimes they f it up. hence it's worth it.
I have been saying that he shouldn't be blamed due to lvg using him shockingly. But sometimes I do wonder if we should have given him the huge contract we did. He's not really one of the world's best week in week out. He's seemingly lost the mobility to play uptop according to our manager (although I'm not sure about that) and he's such a mediocre sloppy and static central midfielder.
He is being extremely professional, doing something he is obviously not confortable with without complaint, but, and through no fault of his own, he is awful in midfield, if LVG is not going to play him upfront then sell him.
4 years ago to the day
A goal I never tire of seeing.
I love that little slump of the arms Berbatov does. Probably annoyed that Nani didn't pass it to him instead.
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