“Here you go la’ fill ya boots”
Ever since Wayne Rooney decided to hand over penalty taking duties to Robin Van Persie the interweb has been awash with praise for the striker for having the sense and humility to admit his record has now become so bad, it’s time to let someone else have a go.
Rooney has missed nine out of 28 penalties, a record that would make even the likes of Chris Waddle and Gareth Southgate blush so it’s come as no surprise the England striker has given his duties to one of the best finishers in world football. Well done Wazza eh? Well I’m sorry but no, I don’t agree. Yes, Rooney’s record is awful and simply nowhere near good enough for any top class forward, but is that really the attitude we want from a player who’s been labelled as ‘world class’ for more or less the last decade?
Rooney could have looked at his penalties and thought “I know, I’ll practice more, I’ll study the ones I missed and where it went wrong. I’m penalty taker for Manchester United, I want goals, this is my job and I’m not handing it over.”
But no instead Rooney simply said, “scoring from 12 yards is beyond me, let someone else do it,” which is a bit disappointing from a player who despite his flaws always seems to give it his all.
When Cristiano Ronaldo missed the biggest penalty of his career do you think he suddenly didn’t want to take them anymore? No, it made him seemingly more determined, after his big money move to Madrid, even having a barney with Xabi Alonso in one game over the chance to take a spot kick.
Rooney is supposed to be world class and if he is, he should be working on his game proving his detractors wrong and not giving up his penalty duties without a fight. Heck, even Jermaine Defoe doesn’t like to have spot kicks taken away from him no matter how many he misses. Had Sir Alex taken the spot kicks away from Rooney I wouldn’t have any complaints, but for the former Everton man to simply hand them over, seems for me a bit defeatist and not what I’d expect or desire from a player of Rooney’s calibre.
Am I being too harsh on Rooney, has he done the right thing or is there some value to my ramblings? Answers on a brick through the usual window please, or comment below :
The 1st thing that came to my mind when i read about rooney handing over penalties was “this is not the same rooney, where is the desire? where is the hunger?”
Im extremely disappointed that he doesnt want to come back stronger. Hes changed over the last few seasons and i know it may help the club, but this isnt the wayne rooney that made me fall in love with football when i was 8 years old.
I totally agree with you.I think its a shame that our ultimate man is handling over the responsibility but I also think there is another motive behind maybe its to help RVP win the golden boot
I totally agree with you.I think its a shame that our ultimate man is handling over the responsibility but I also think there is another motive behind it maybe its to help RVP win the golden boot
I totally agree with you.Its dissappointing that our ultimate man is handling over the responsibility but I also think there is another motive behind it maybe its to help RVP win the golden boot
That may have been the story for the press, but Ferguson decides who takes penalties, Rooney had nothing to “pass on”. I can’t be disappointed that Van Persie, who takes a much better penalty, will now be taking ours.
Maybe he will practice but meanwhile RVP will take the spot (kicks). He did a big gesture stepping back, not holding with his teeth on the penalties and putting team’s interest ahead of his own. Well done Wazza
I actually didn’t have this reaction but having read your article I do now agree. One of the things that puts CR7 above Rooney (and Messi) is how much adversity he’s had to overcome in his career. Like you say, that missed PK could’ve broken a lesser man but not Ronny. He was class, both physically and mentally.
To me, Roo’s passing of the duties is part of a disappointing trend in his game. Whether it’s inconsistency, regular spats of poor fitness or just outright not taking responsibility on the pitch, his place in the 1st team is hardly assured. It goes without saying that Kagawa is the superior #10, while Van Persie is the superior #9. Now that Roo’s handied PK duties over, his contribution to the club has diminished even further. When is it gonna end?
Just remember that Dennis Bergkamp did the same thing but still scored loads of goals for arsenal.
Whole-heartedly DISAGREE.
You’re hoping for exuberant pride from Rooney that will invariably cost the TEAM goals, where him relinquishing the duty elevates the significance of the goals to beyond individual ego and accolades; rather, it becomes a collaborative effort for the team – RvP is more reliable and better, so the team draws from that strength.
It’s about the team, not the individual unit.
If Rooney can return to training, like you suggested, and pick up his penalty-taking game – sure, hand Rooney the reigns again, but until that moment the focus should be entirely on who is the most suitable to take the penalties – at the moment, it’s NOT Rooney.
I don’t think you can accuse Rooney of just handing them over and not trying to improve that part of his game. Who’s to say he is not studying the ones he missed, or putting extra hours in on the training ground practicing them. All Rooney is saying, is that right now he is not up to scratch on penalty kicks, so for the good of the team, why not let RVP who has a proven track record with penalties take over.