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Rooney V Fergie : Much Ado About Nothing

Published by Ian John on October 16, 2010

Well, all is not well between Wayne Rooney and Sir Alex Ferguson, some would have you believe. The England man was not fully fit, so stated Sir Alex. Wayne himself, while away with England, rebutted that stating his fitness was fine. Indeed he completed a full ninety minutes for his country in the week.

Such a trifling matter, of course, in the hands of the Great British press becomes an instant story. The Daily Mirror trotted out a list of ‘Ten United Stars Who had Disagreed with Fergie!” and, unsurprisingly, all of them had left the club fairly shortly afterwards. There was a rift, an argument, a row, a disagreement. The press were loving it. It could not have been more exciting if Wayne and Sir Alex had lathered themselves in oil, stripped down to their boxer shorts and wrestled in the centre circle prior to United’s next home game.

Of course, the reality for those who live beyond the realms of hyperbole and in the real world, is nothing of the sort. A minor difference of opinion. Sir Alex Ferguson feels Wayne Rooney is still not quite the player he was. Wayne feels, physically at least, he is fine. Both are right.

Rooney 2010 compared to Rooney 2009 is not even worth of comparison at the moment. He is out of form and out of sorts. To deny that is a fact is like saying Michael Owen is the same player now as he was when he played in the World Cup in 1998. That is not to say Rooney will not bounce back, I have no doubt he will, but at the moment, like several players in the top flight, his form is not what it was.

Now lets take the issue of his fitness. Physically Rooney looks fine. He had a slight niggle before the England game, but even Sir Alex Ferguson stated before the game that he was likely to be fit to play. So where is the contentious issue surrounding his fitness? Fergie said he had a knock but would probably be fit, he turned up for England, had a little treatment, and was fit to play and indeed, did play the entire game.

Mentally however, it is probably fair to say Rooney must be somewhat at odds. His private life having been laid public in recent months and his performances at the World Cup also called into question. That and a worrying lack of form at present has obviously eaten away at his confidence.

But I have no doubt it will return.

Of course, all the papers are now stating that Real Madrid are waiting in the wings with a £75m bid for Rooney in January mooted. The fact he hasn’t signed his new contract yet is also seen as further evidence of his impending departure. The ‘disagreement’ with Sir Alex also factored in, it seems there is only one outcome. Rooney will be leaving in January.

If it wasn’t so pathetic, it would be funny. United will not be selling Rooney in January, Rooney is fit physically but needs time to sort out his private life and personal issues, he will return a better and stronger player. He will sign a new contract at Manchester United and he and Sir Alex will not be wrestling before the next Old Trafford home game.

As Willy Shakespeare once wrote, much ado about nothing. A speciality of the British press.

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