Wayne Rooney’s continued selection for Manchester United will make their task of competing for the Premier League crown increasingly difficult come May. And Jose Mourinho needs to remove the one-time talisman from his starting XI immediately.
The Portuguese’s decision to stick by his captain has been rather perplexing so far. Mourinho, far from an up-and-coming name in management, hardly lacks the authority required to dethrone the 30-year-old.
During his tenure at Real Madrid, questions begin to arise about Iker Casillas’ performance levels and status as Los Blancos’ No.1. Mourinho acted swiftly, first in starting Antonio Adan – now of Real Betis – before signing Diego Lopez – currently on loan with Espanyol from AC Milan – to permanently displace the club’s most loyal servant.
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As unemotional and apathetic as his treatment of Casillas was, Mourinho appears unable to do the same with Rooney, despite the need for such a decision being, to no end, more pressing.
It is not an understatement to say that Rooney is not the player that he once was; that much is irrefutable. Just how far he has fallen, however, cannot have been predicted by many and is still quite hard to believe.
During the 2015/16 Premier League season, Rooney netted on just eight occasions and looked a shadow of his former self in front of goal. Attempting 70 shots throughout the campaign, the striker-turned-midfielder had a conversion rate of just 11.4 percent.
His recent efforts to reestablish himself as a deep-lying playmaker have fooled some, but not many. Even Mourinho himself sneered at the suggestion that the Englishman can thrive in such a role.
“You can tell me his pass is amazing but my pass is also amazing without pressure. Maybe he is not a striker, not a number nine anymore.
“For me, he will never be a number six, playing fifty metres from the goal. He will be a nine, a ten, a nine and a half – but never a six or an eight.” – Mourinho in July
Yet, despite these words just a couple of months ago, Rooney was deployed in this exact role at Watford on Sunday, and United suffered because of it. Trudging around the midfield, Rooney proved to be nothing more than a burden to his teammates. He was slow and awkward in possession and his passing was anything but amazing.
From attacking, to defending, to playmaking; the statistics make for grim reading for United. Rooney completed just 33 successful passes on Sunday. Of these, just six were played forward. He attempted just one shot – which was off target – and failed to make a tackle or create a single chance for those in front of him.
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Even when he wasn’t under pressure, he rarely delivered. Of the nine set-pieces he attempted, only once did United have a goalscoring opportunity as a result. Though just taken from one game, the above statistics prove Mourinho’s summer words to be true.
Rooney should not be deployed as a midfielder
Simply put, Rooney is not a midfielder, nor will he ever be. Given Mourinho’s initial reluctance for him to feature in that position, the current situation is obscure. With Michael Carrick, Daley Blind, and even Morgan Schneiderlin sidelined, it becomes near unfathomable.
Even when deployed as a number 10, Rooney becomes an unnecessary obstacle. His selection here in a 4-2-3-1 forces Paul Pogba to play deeper, which mutes the world’s all-time most expensive footballer.
Pogba does not possess the defensive discipline to succeed in such a deep role. Neither do his attributes suggest that this is where he should play. Perhaps his greatest asset is his nimble-footedness, despite his build.
The Frenchman’s passing range is superb, and his ability to consistently produce the spectacular is bettered by few in the game, as he showcased at Juventus. Given the opportunity, Pogba has the ability to be the single most dominating player in the world.
The decision taken by Mourinho to play Rooney in Pogba’s prime position throws up memories of fellow superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s time at Barcelona. Never shy of a quote, one of the Swede’s about Pep Guardiola could easily be applied to Mourinho and his handling of the 23-year-old now.
“When you buy me, you are buying a Ferrari,” he told World Soccer. “If you drive a Ferrari you put premium fuel in the tank, you drive onto the motorway and you put the accelerator to the floor. Guardiola filled up with diesel and went for a spin in the countryside. If that’s what he wanted, he should have bought a Fiat from the start.”
If Ibrahimovic is a Ferrari, then Pogba is a Porsche. Wayne Rooney, unfortunately, might not even have the reliability of a Fiat.
Why hasn’t Mourinho dropped Rooney yet?
Rooney’s continued selection could be put down to an unwillingness on Mourinho’s part to shake things up too much at Old Trafford, as he did in Madrid and has done countless times in the past. Following last season’s nightmare with Chelsea, it is possible that Mourinho might be lacking in his usual self-confidence, and his ego could have taken a blow.
Given the coach’s apparent discomfort in taking a decision that is blatantly required, it could be construed that does not feel as untouchable as in recent years. Mourinho may finally be feeling fallible, but his insistence to stick with a declining Rooney is detrimental to his side and standing in the way of a potential Ballon d’Or winner thriving on English soil.
The sooner he takes the plunge and removes the captain from selection, the sooner the Red Devils can return to competing for major honours, but until then, a season of frustration will continue to unfold.
