Probably but I'd still like to hear what he thinks.
Bizarre to me that Englands best player for decades drops off a cliff at 28 and nobody in the media wonders out loud what happened.
Wayne Rooney Appreciation Thread
- Thread starter Samid
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik @Rood and Imran @Annihilate Now! start with the good news by celebrating Manchester United Women's emphatic FA Cup win over Spurs at Wembley and the future of manager Marc Skinner.
Then it's the bad news and the ever worsening form of our Men with losses to Arsenal and Palace.
Finally the main debate - ETH Out now or keep him until the end of the season - if not longer. Are you Team Nik or Team Imran?
Bizarre to me that Englands best player for decades drops off a cliff at 28 and nobody in the media wonders out loud what happened.
It's been discussed a fair bit, hasn't it? Most seem to want to put it down to starting at the highest level so young and the number of games catching up with him but to me it was definitely lifestyle. Those who go tea total and really watch their diet are able to prolong their career. It's makes absolute sense for the opposite to also be the case.
I agree it would be interesting to hear his thoughts.
The media gave the same excuses loads on here gave. “Played since he was 16, nearly 600 games under his belt, ankle injury against Bayern etc etc”.
You look at how many other players started young and are still going into their mid-late thirties these days and you realise it’s nonsense. He just didn’t look after himself at all. The fitness advantage that a tee-totaller has over someone who can casually sink 10 pints at Premier League level is absolutely huge.
Fergie always had concerns about Rooney's body type, I believe endomorph is the term that describes Rooney's (and his dad's, which Fergie noted). I actually think this is why Fergie was okay with jettisoning Rooney in 2012. The big bones and freakish body mass helped him when he was 16/17 years old but similarly had him marked for an early decline.
I think that might also be why Rooney/the United coaches started developing his all-round game so early on; I remember threads on here wondering why Rooney didn't burst forward and attack defenders like he used to, as early as 2006-07ish. I think that was Rooney and the coaching staff acknowledging he wouldn't be able to maintain that style of playing for very long.
Liverpool fans might draw comparisons with Jan Molby, who was similarly Cartman-like in his build, and also had his best days long before he turned 30.
I think that might also be why Rooney/the United coaches started developing his all-round game so early on; I remember threads on here wondering why Rooney didn't burst forward and attack defenders like he used to, as early as 2006-07ish. I think that was Rooney and the coaching staff acknowledging he wouldn't be able to maintain that style of playing for very long.
Liverpool fans might draw comparisons with Jan Molby, who was similarly Cartman-like in his build, and also had his best days long before he turned 30.
Strange thing about Rooney's decline was that his touch left him. It wasn't just a fitness thing.
That's because he was playing pissed half the time.
You can't tell me he was sober in some of those latter matches, it was frankly embarrasing watching him.
I'm sure the truth will come out eventually. Such a shame he was a big drinker as it definitely took a big part of his prime away.
You can see it with Ronaldo as well though
I'm still laughing about what he said. 
I want to laugh too but I can't understand a thing.
Bloody love Wayne... man just says what he wants to say and doesn't give two shits
I met him once when he was playing for United. All alone. Was very soft spoken. Shook hands and asked him how are you doing? He said good, thank you very much.
Bar Messi, the greatest young talent i've ever seen. He was a man at 16. Could do absolutely everything. Special player and my favourite ever player.
Best english talent I've ever seen. That debut after he scored the hatrick in the CL, I genuinely thought he'd score every single time he'd get on the ball and I remember at the time he was seen as the superior talent to Ronaldo who use to blow hot and cold but 16 yr old rooney was a wrecking machine.
Brian McClair came over to my part of Norway some years ago (post SAF) to chat and watch the match with United supporters, and I asked him about Rooney and this point. He was pretty straight about Rooney’s decline being down to lack of professionalism in terms of taking care of himself.
This Glazers apologist is dead to me.
A relentless bull. Just take a look at his highlights, its hard not to appreciate it. Everyone can say he was unprofessional and didn't care about his body but feck it, he's human too. We gained more and lost less from his time at United., be happy with that. He did stay a season or 2 too long but if the manager is still picking u in the team every week your hardly gonna say no to playing. Point is blame the manager not the player.
During his playing days, I was always thinking that he was never top tier. Looking back now, I didn’t know what I was thinking.
What a player he was!
Agree, he was great player for United if only we could rewind the clock and have a 22 year old Rooney now, we would be top of the league, oh well.
Although some truth to it you are easily dismissing his injuries and playing time. There are very, very few players who play that long and stay fit but as you say the only way they possibly can in the first place is immaculate fitness discipline.
Think about the amount of footballers who don’t make it at the start of their career due to injury. Then those players who quit during mid or late career due to injuries including greats of the game.
Naming a dozen few Zlatan Ronaldo or Giggs type freaks doesnt Mean Wazzas playing time or injuries were an excuse.
His decline had nothing to do with injuries. That’s the point. He had issues with alcohol, clearly didn’t eat well and didn’t have fitness discipline. It’s that simple.
Apart from Messi and CR7, every other world great only peaked for 3-5 years.
It’s got nothing to do with peaking. At 27 he began a very sharp decline because of all the aforementioned.
I don’t know why people are so precious about this and desperate to put his decline down as “natural” and “expected because of the amount of matches he played”. Its bollocks. He didn’t look after himself, at all. Full stop.
He had the football brain to play until he was 35. He drank too much, smoked and didn’t keep on top of his fitness and weight. He’s literally admitted in interviews since retiring that he drank every night. The only argument you could make for him is that some players do the same and are lucky enough to have the genetics to get away with it. He doesn’t, quite the opposite but that’s not an excuse that’s just him being unlucky his unprofessionalism cost him what should have been a fantastic twilight of his career.
It’s depressing how much he’s slept on by people.
100%.
He got away with it when he was younger but as he got older he's poor lifestyle caught up with him.
It's not even just the drinking but when you're drunk you eat like shit and then when you're hungover you do the same. He's been photographed smoking also. I bet after a few beers hed have a few smokes.
At the same age Ronaldo was living like a monk.
I think he didn't have the emotional intelligence and maturity to deal with the fame and pressure, so drank to cope.
The way he described it in his book, he was borderline alcoholic or at least a problem drinker
And still he won everything there is on club level while being top scorer for one of the biggest clubs in the world so he didn't need to play until he was 35. His natural talent was/is unbeliavable!!
Wasn’t the same after his hair transplant. I remember the theories on here that the drugs he was having to take post-treatment had effected his aggression and stamina.
The fact he was drinking every night and still a quality player says it all
Interesting theory. He had the hair transplant in 2011 and his last good season was 2011-2012.
He was still a good player but seemed to drop off in form and consistency in his late 20's. Was born in 1985.
I put it down to lifestyle and body type. Also thought he was overthinking things, was better just playing on instinct.
I know someone who was in the fancy tippee campground at Glastonbury and Rooney was there drinking all weekend. To be fair it was the off season but still I doubt Ronaldo or Messi were doing the same
I was a massive Rooney fan when I was a kid, I still remember that one video with the Dirty Sanchez boys where he got to shoot at them while they were naked. The 2000s were an amazing period for football and he was definitely one of the biggest stars in the world during that period.
Even they had peaks. But both adjusted their game.
As Messi lost his explosiveness, he dropped deeper and deeper to become a more classic number 10.
Ronaldo, by 30, was more of a goalpoacher then anything else.
I have massive respect for Rooney. He could have achieved more individually had he taken care of himself but on the pitch, he gave everything for the team. He sacrificed his game several times to allow Cristiano to focus on scoring hence the glory.
If I had my pick of any ex player to come into this side right now it’d be Rooney. I think he’d be the missing key that would turn us from title challengers to title winners overnight.
An absolute beast of a player at his peak and despite how rated he is, I still think he’s underrated. didn’t have the longevity of Messi and Ronaldo but he was absolutely on par with them at his best.
An absolute beast of a player at his peak and despite how rated he is, I still think he’s underrated. didn’t have the longevity of Messi and Ronaldo but he was absolutely on par with them at his best.
So did O'Shea, Brown and the rest of the not good enough crowd at this club.
Point is he completely destroyed himself because of poor professionalism outside of the pitch. You could clearly see it in 2014 and all the fanboys going crazy everytime you mentioned it.
I loved 00s Rooney but god did I hate the 2010's version.
O'Shea and Brown never were integral part of United team, they were rotational players, it's but rich to compare them with Rooney.
Who cares if he did all that when up to the point of his decline he already had everyhing accomplished? Who should he prove anything else? GifLord and Black Adder or whoever from internet?
He lived his life the way he wanted and got everything he wanted, what's there more to ask for?
Rooney often looked like he is drunk, that was his biggest problem post 2011, he was so hot and cold, so inconsistent, poor first touch, inconsistent passing, etc. and considering his problem with alcohol it's quite possible that he was having bad hangovers in many games he played for us. Combined with probably poor trainings after bad nights and you get what he showed during his last few years for us, very inconsistent and past his best player who was once great player.
Even at his best he was inconsistent, but he had power, strength, and explosivness that he lacked later in his career that made him look bad once his other parts of the game were shit.
Even at his best he was inconsistent, but he had power, strength, and explosivness that he lacked later in his career that made him look bad once his other parts of the game were shit.
Well he doesn't have to prove us anything, but he could have definitely been better player with his talent. For all his quality, he only had two, possible three world class seasons at best, which is criminal for such a player. I am sure he himself will regret it.
Again, ifs and buts and could've, should've. This is his appreciation thread, to appreciate what he HAS done not what he COULD'VE done. I'm sure he won't.
He came to United to score goals and to win things.
He won everything and left the all time record goalscorer.