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Will Rooney show how he has matured?

Graham Fisher in Editorial, World Cup 7 Jun 2010

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Has he matured?

When I read what former USA defender Alexi Lalas said the other day I had very mixed feelings. He said that his country’s best chance of success against England next Saturday at the World Cup will come if they attempt to ‘wind up’ Wayne Rooney.

Sad

The reason I had mixed feelings was because my first reaction was to think what a sad, negative and unpleasant way that is to approach a game. My second reaction was to realise that I would be encouraging my players to do exactly that if I was managing a team playing against the brilliant but temperamental Rooney.

We all remember the last World Cup quarter-final when that winker Cristiano Ronaldo helped to get Rooney sent off and England ended up losing to Portugal. We have all seen Rooney lose the ball and then chase after his tackler maniacally trying to retrieve the ball whilst we all close our eyes and hope for the best.

England’s new vice-captain Frank Lampard has now spoken publicly to give his reaction to the suggestion made by Lalas.

“I don’t know about winding up Wayne Rooney. Everyone has seen his maturity as a player and a person over the years. I don’t think there is any issue about trying to wind him up.”

He went on to talk about the need for discipline from all the players.

“Discipline is important at any level of football. You have to understand the importance of having 11 men because when you are at the top end, the small details and small changes mean everything. If you get a red card it’s a bit stupid and it can affect the team. Referees are looking at these kind of incidents because the world is watching. The manager has always spoken about making sure you don’t lose your head. Everyone wants to be aggressive in the tackle but you don’t want to overstep the mark and put the team in jeopardy.”

Nobody could argue against the sentiments expressed by Lampard about discipline in general but his comments about Rooney showing maturity as a man and a player may need closer inspection.

Dramatic

Rooney is now twenty-four years old and has got married and become a father. We all know that those two things, particularly fatherhood, have a dramatic effect on a young man and do tend to curtail the excesses that become the norm in your late teens and early twenties.

On the field of play we have seen Rooney develop over the past season into the player that we all thought he would be when he arrived on the scene as a teenager at Everton. He has been brilliant this season and almost single-handedly kept a stuttering Manchester United side in with a chance of Premier League success.

Battle

So in many ways Rooney has matured in the way that Frank Lampard suggests. On the other hand, he is still a passionate player who hates being tackled, fouled, beaten or making an error. You can see the red mist descend and then the internal battle that he goes through in order to try to control it.

There is no doubt that Rooney is England’s best player and our best chance of success. There is also no doubt, unfortunately, that Lalas is right in describing the best way to try to stop him.

Hope

I really hope that Frank Lampard is right when he says that Rooney won’t allow himself to react if they try to ‘wind him up’. I’m not convinced, but if he can keep his temper and play to his best, he will be the star of the show for England and represents our best chance of winning.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Graham Fisher


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