Football Features - Part 8: Top 12 Strikers in the World at the Moment
5. Wayne Rooney:
One player who was definitely overshadowed before last season was the English superstar, Wayne Rooney. Wayne was a player who was overshadowed by the Portuguese captain, Cristiano Ronaldo (aka CR7), as he was the player who managed to impress the fans with his dazzling dribbling techniques and inch perfect free kicks.
It was Cristiano Ronaldo who managed to show the world that he was simply the best player in the world and not only did he help the English side win a double, he also managed to bag himself the Ballon d’Or. Meanwhile, Wayne Rooney shunted to the left side of midfield to compensate for Ronaldo’s inability to track back and defend.
If Wayne Rooney is to be summed up in one word then that word would definitely be “aggressive.” The way he charges up into the opponents’ 18 yard box is simply phenomenal. Moreover, Rooney seems to enjoy creating goals as much as scoring them.
The Manchester United starlet started his career with his boyhood club, Everton. Eventually, Sir Alex Ferguson sought out Rooney’s talent and paid thirty millions pounds to bring him to Old Trafford. Wayne Rooney managed to score 15 goals in only 67 appearances for Everton, and on his debut for Manchester United against Fenerbache in the Champions League he scored a sensational hat-trick.
Soon after the departure of the “main man,” Cristiano Ronaldo, there was only one man who could replace him to help the team stay on top and it was definitely the English powerhouse, Wayne Rooney. He took charge of the team really well and with the help of experienced players like Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes along with the amazing defensive line-up, Wayne Rooney helped himself to a substantial number of goals.
Rooney soon started to show his fabulous form and scored 34 goals in the English Premier League. However, it wasn’t Rooney who won the golden boot award as Didier Drogba scored a hat trick on the last day of the English Premier League and easily crossed Wayne Rooney’s 34 goals.
Throughout the FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifiers, Wayne Rooney performed fabulously and scored a lot of goals for his country. As a result, along with his performances in the 09-10 season, expectations were high for Rooney at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Unfortunately, at the tail end of the season Rooney picked up an injury that meant he wasn’t match fit going into the World Cup. Coupled with poor performances from his teammates and poor tactics from Fabio Capello, Rooney’s world cup was nothing short of a disaster as he failed to score a goal and generally performed poorly.
Yet, to judge Rooney based solely on the World Cup would be a significant mistake. Rooney is a remarkable talent who is as good as passer of the ball as he is a finisher. He is a striker who not only scores goals but creates goals as well, and can play in a variety of positions. This makes him one of the best strikers in the world.
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