“Remember the name Wayne Rooney” – Clive Tyldesley’s iconic words that marked the arrival of a 16-year-old Everton apprentice on the scene with a goal that brought an end to Arsenal’s 30-match unbeaten league run in 2002 are pure bliss for any football fan.
A legend was born that day as he became the youngest scorer in Premier League history and it was just a sign of things to come.
Today, July 10th 2017, marks Rooney’s return to Goodison Park after a 13-year spell at Manchester United where he has every trophy possible at club level and will walk out as the club’s leading goal-scorer. Adored by the Old Trafford faithful as “The White Pele”, Rooney was more than just about scoring goals.
Rooney epitomised everything that the club stood for – passion, determination, courage, and selflessness – the latter of which has given Rooney more stick than love from even a section of the United fans who believe that Rooney never realised his true potential.
Many believed that he fell behind while Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi surged forward with their goal-scoring exploits but at United, Rooney simply sacrificed his personal glory for the club’s sake.
Even when Rooney asked for a transfer away from Old Trafford – not once, but twice – the fans stood by him and the man repaid the faith with his performances week in, week out. True, the goals have dried up and he may have lost the pace he displayed as an energetic teenager who arrived at Carrington all those years ago, but with Rooney gone, the United fans will be missing someone they adored to the core. Someone United may never replace as a presence in the dressing room.
As Rooney bids farewell to United and seeks a renaissance at his boyhood club, let’s take a look at the definitive timeline of his time at United, where he arrived as a brazen teenager and left as a club legend.
#1 Wayne Rooney signs for Manchester United (August 31, 2004)
Wayne Rooney spent two seasons at Merseyside before putting in a transfer request during the 2004 summer transfer window amidst interest from Manchester United and Newcastle United. The decision to leave the club he supported and played for all his life was not an easy one, but it was one which was needed to fulfil his immense potential.
However, Everton was not willing to let Rooney go cheap and rejected a bid of £20 million from Newcastle United. But it was Manchester United that had their eyes set on Rooney and were not willing to let him off the hook in any manner and finally got their man hours before the transfer deadline for a fee of £25.6 million.
It was the most expensive transfer fee for a teenager but something Sir Alex Ferguson was hell bent upon as he wanted the man he described as the best player England had seen over the past 30 years at all cost. And what a wise investment it would prove to be.
#2 Hat-trick on Old Trafford debut (September 28, 2004)
The Theatre of Dreams can prove to be a daunting experience not just for the opposition but also for the home players who step onto the turf with the immense pressure to perform always on their shoulders.
Rooney displayed no such reservations and in fact, made his debut for Manchester United against Fenerbahce in the UEFA Champions League group match on 28 September 2004, a night to remember with a stellar hat-trick that made him the youngest player to achieve the feat in Europe’s premier club competition, aged 18 years and 335 days.
He had to wait for nearly a month after signing on the dotted line for United before making his debut as he recovered from a metatarsal injury he picked up while on international duty with England at Euro 2004, but his performance that night against the Turkish outfit was as if he had never been away from the pitch.
The day before the match, Fenerbahce’s goalkeeper Rustu Recber had dismissed Rooney’s threat saying, “People expect great things of Rooney but he has no experience of club football at this level.”
However, the Turkish international was left to rue his words as Rooney completed a memorable hat-trick which featured a left foot strike from Ruud Van Nistelrooy’s perfect through ball, a dummy followed by a right-foot strike from outside the penalty area and a free kick on the edge of the Turkish side’s box to cap off a perfect debut for Rooney and a memorable evening as United won 6-2.
#3 Rooney’s first Premier League goal for United (October 24, 2004)
Rooney scored more goals and registered more assists against Newcastle United than any other side but it was against Arsenal that Rooney impressed the most when it came to clashes against United’s main rivals.
The match between Manchester United and Arsenal at Old Trafford on October 2004 would go down in history infamously as the “Battle of the Buffet” but it was also a highly significant match as The Red Devils brought an end to Arsenal’s 49-match unbeaten run in the Premier League in a fiercely-contested encounter.
The match saw Rooney impressing on the day that marked his 19th birthday as he won a contentious penalty after going down following Sol Cambell’s challenge helping Ruud van Nistelrooy slot home the penalty before scoring himself late on after Alan Smith set him up perfectly for a tap in.
This was Rooney’s first league goal for United and a performance that made the Old Trafford crowd fall in love with their teenage superstar.
#4 Rooney’s sensational volley against Newcastle United (April 24, 2005)
Rooney finished his debut season as United's top league scorer with 11 goals and was credited with the PFA Young Player of the Year award as well. But it was tough times indeed at Old Trafford and for Rooney in particular as the trophies which he craved for when he signed up for the club eluded him in his first season.
There were times he took the anger and disappointment out on the field and the referees were paying extra attention to the football sensation who had energy buzzing around all the time but not always on the right side of the law.
The match against Newcastle United on April 24, 2005, was one such occasion with Rooney cutting a frustrated figure on the pitch and picking up a yellow card in the process prompting Sir Alex Ferguson to think about bringing him off.
Following the yellow card, Rooney was still dishing out expletives at referee Neale Barry when the ball popped up at the edge of the penalty area after a poor headed clearance from Peter Ramage and Rooney banged the ball straight into the top corner with the sweetest connection possible.
It was a goal that signalled Rooney’s ability to score great goals, and boy, there were more to come.
#5 Rooney’s first piece of silverware with United (Carling Cup final – February 26, 2006)
Wayne Rooney secured his first piece of silverware with Manchester United when they won the 2005/06 Carling Cup defeating Wigan Athletic 4-0 in the final played on February 26, 2006.
Having finished second-best to Arsenal in the final of the 2005/06 FA Cup, the English star made his second visit to the Millenium Stadium in Cardiff in a United jersey a night to remember with a Man-of-the-Match performance against The Latics – scoring twice, in the 33rd and 61st minutes.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Louis Saha netted the other two goals as Sir Alex Ferguson left out Ruud van Nistelrooy out of the matchday and in the summer transfer window, the Dutchman would leave for Real Madrid making Rooney United’s main man up front. The revered No 10 jersey at Old Trafford would remain unclaimed for the 2006/07 season before Rooney took up the responsibility the following season.
#6 The birth of a partnership – Rooney and Ronaldo (Man United vs Fulham, August 19, 2006)
With Van Nistelrooy off to Madrid, the onus was on Wayne Rooney to lead the line for Manchester United. But the lead up to the 2006/07 season was anything but perfect as his altercation with United teammate Cristiano Ronaldo during England’s clash with Portugal at the 2006 FIFA World Cup which resulted in the Englishman being send off after a foul on Ricardo Carvalho, was picked up by the media as to all was not well at United between the two young football superstars.
Ronaldo and Rooney chose to silence the doubters with a clinical display on the field in the 2006/07 Premier League season opener against Fulham at Old Trafford. Their partnership was telepathic at times as Rooney netted twice and the Portuguese scored once, finishing off a cross from the former.
United won 5-1 on the day and would go on to clinch the Premier League title that season after three years without the title. The match against Fulham was certainly a highly significant one as we saw a glimpse of what Rooney and Ronaldo could go on to achieve together for United.
#7 European glory – 2007/08 UEFA Champions League Final, Manchester United vs Chelsea (May 21, 2008)
The first all-English final in the history of the UEFA Champions League was one for the ages as Manchester United and Chelsea fought till the very end in a memorable encounter at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia.
Cristiano Ronaldo opened the scoring for United, heading in a cross from Wes Brown before Frank Lampard equalised for Chelsea in the dying moments of the first half. The side from London went close to getting the lead on a couple of occasions in the second half but the match would head to extra time and eventually penalties as both teams failed to find the decisive goal.
Though he was subbed off in the 101st minute of the match, Rooney was an influential figure on the pitch for United as he ran tirelessly all night to provide the balance for United who were attacking with Ronaldo and Tevez up front.
Edwin Van Der Sar saved Nicolas’ Anelka’s penalty to give United the title and Rooney would celebrate his first ever Champions League success long into the night as United capped off a memorable season in which they defended the Premier League title as well.
#8 Wayne Rooney at his selfless best (Manchester United vs Bayern Munich, April 7, 2010)
Manchester United made it to the final of the 2008/09 UEFA Champions League final as well but this time around, they ended up on the losing side against a Barcelona side which was simply too strong for a lacklustre United side on the night. United did, however, secure the Premier League title for the third year running, with Rooney scoring 20 goals in all competitions.
Both Ronaldo and Tevez left the club ahead of the 2009/10 season with the Portuguese heading off to fulfil his dream at Real Madrid while the latter moved to bitter rivals Manchester City following a fall-out with Sir Alex Ferguson. Despite Dimitar Berbatov’s presence, the onus was on Rooney to step up and he did just that scoring 34 goals from 42 matches in all competitions.
The last of that goal tally came against Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final clash at the Allianz Arena on March 30, 2010, but it was Rooney’s display in the second leg that truly epitomised the greatness of Rooney as a team player.
Rooney twisted his ankle in the dying minutes of the match as the hosts secured a 2-1 lead heading into the tie at Old Trafford with reports suggesting that the Englishman had suffered from ligament damage which would keep him on the sidelines for two to three weeks.
However, the return leg just a week later threw up a big surprise when Rooney was named in the starting eleven for United. With a heavy bandage on his leg, it was clear that Rooney was in no position fit enough to play a match of such magnitude but the man defied the odds with an inspiring display as United raced to a 3-0 lead, including setting up Darren Gibson’s opener.
The injury would become too much to handle for Rooney as he was subbed off in the second half and though United won the match 3-2 on the night, they lost the tie 4-4 on the away goals rule.
The fact that Rooney played no further part that season proves how he always put the club ahead of himself but it was a memorable season for him on the personal front as he netted the winner against Aston Villa in the Carling Cup final and was named the PFA Player’s Player of the Year as well the FWA Player of the Year.
The season also saw Rooney becoming only the 20th player to score 100 goals for Manchester United when he netted twice in a 5-0 away win at Wigan Athletic.
#9 The overhead goal against Manchester City (February 12, 2011)
In October 2010, the Manchester United faithful were left stunned when Sir Alex Ferguson revealed during a press conference that Rooney wanted to quit the club, claiming that the Old Trafford outfit was not ambitious enough.
Rooney did a U-turn, however, signing a big-money five-year contract at Old Trafford but the fans that adored him to the core, at least a section of them, were still reeling in disbelief that the player that they worshipped like a talisman had expressed a desire to leave.
Goals were hard to come by and an ankle injury didn’t help and Rooney was doing little justice to his talent with his first goal of the season from open play coming as late as January when he scored against West Bromwich Albion in a 2-1 win on New Year’s Day.
Rooney had to do something remarkable to win over the fans and that’s exactly what he did scoring that incredible 78th-minute bicycle kick winner over bitter rivals Manchester City on February 12.
Time stood still as Rooney produced one of the most memorable goals ever scored at Old Trafford with a sublime finish that stunned the footballing world. Sir Alex Ferguson described it as the best goal he has seen at the stadium and the goal helped him win over the most stubborn fans as well and sparked his season to life as he would go on to score in the quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals of the UEFA Champions League.
Though they lost to Barcelona yet again in Europe, the Premier League title – a record 19th one – was back at Old Trafford with Rooney clinching the equaliser against Blackburn Rovers which secured the title in United’s favour.
#10 Hat-trick against Arsenal (August 28, 2011)
Wayne Rooney produced arguably his greatest display ever in a United jersey when he scored a hat-trick and assisted one goal as Sir Alex Ferguson’s side ran riot at Old Trafford, decimating rivals Arsenal 8-2.
Rooney scored two sublime free-kicks from the edge of the penalty box before slotting home a penalty in the second half to complete his sixth United hat-trick at the time as he inspired the side to one of their most memorable Premier League victories ever. The match also saw Rooney reaching the landmark of 150 goals for United with the first of his two free kicks.
Robin Van Persie was on the opposite side that day but he would later switch sides to form a formidable partnership with Rooney that helped United secure the 2012/13 league title in what was Sir Alex Ferguson’s final season in charge at Old Trafford.
#11 Rooney hands in a transfer request, yet again (May 12, 2013)
After securing the 2012/13 Premier League title, Sir Alex Ferguson announced that the season would be his final one in charge at Old Trafford but a bigger bombshell was dropped on May 12, 2013 when the gaffer himself revealed after his final home game in charge against Swansea that Rooney had handed in a transfer request.
The revelation took everyone by surprise as few saw it coming. Rooney had developed a good understanding with Van Persie up front and though there were times when the Englishman found himself on the bench in favour of the former Arsenal forward, there was little to indicate that Rooney wanted to move out.
One of David Moyes’ first tasks at United was to persuade Rooney to stay on and despite strong interest from the likes of Chelsea, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain, Rooney stayed on, but once again cracks developed in his relationship with the Old Trafford faithful.
Rooney signed a contract extension on February 21, 2014, set to keep him at the club until 2019 and he ended the season as the top scorer in the league for United with 17 goals. He also assisted 10 goals in the league and also had the most assists in the 2013–14 Champions League (8).
#12 Named captain of Manchester United (August 12, 2014)
The 2013/14 season proved to be a horrendous one for United as they finished a disappointing seventh in the Premier League with David Moyes being sacked as manager of the side with four games left to play.
There was a change in personnel amongst the players as well with senior pros like Nemanja Vidic, Rio Ferdinand, Patrice Evra and Ryan Giggs calling time on their playing career at Old Trafford.
Dutchman Louis Van Gaal was named as the new manager and while many felt that with he would name Robin Van Persie as the new club captain considering their past association while he was manager of the Dutch national side, the armband was handed to Wayne Rooney with Van Gaal hailing the Englishman’s dedication and professionalism and the inspiration he provides to the club’s youngsters as a long-serving member of the squad.
Rooney described it as a huge honour and it was a role which always seemed destined to happen considering the influence he had in the dressing room as a true leader.
#13 Rooney ends 878-minute scoreless streak (August 26, 2015)
Rooney was United’s leading goalscorer in the 2014/15 campaign, but the fact that a tally of 14 goals achieved the feat, told a tale of the difficult times Manchester United and Wayne Rooney was going through since Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure.
He found goals hard to come by towards the end of the season and at one point went 878 minutes without a goal for the Red Devils before finding the net in the Champions League play-off against Club Brugge when he scored a hat-trick.
Despite scoring the winner against Liverpool at Anfield and captaining the side to his first FA Cup final success with a victory over Crystal Palace in the final, it was evident that Rooney’s powers were on the wane.
#14 Breaking Sir Bobby Charlton’s all-time goal-scoring record (January 21, 2017)
Under Jose Mourinho, Rooney was finding match-time hard to come by with most of the appearances coming off the bench as a substitute. Heading into the clash against Stoke City on January 21 earlier this year, United were on a 12-match unbeaten streak but were in danger of losing the run heading into the final minutes of the match trailing by a goal to nil.
However, Rooney, on as a substitute yet again, proved his big-moment credentials with a sublime free kick to save the day for United while also surpassing the legendary Sri Bobby Charlton’s goal tally of 249 to become Manchester United’s all-time leading goalscorer with 250 goals.
Not that he needed to break the record to establish himself as a club legend but that moment signified Rooney’s greatness in the history of the club that has seen some of the world’s greatest players adorn the jersey.
#15 Rooney returns to Goodison Park (July 9, 2017)
With it becoming apparent that he was not in the first team plans of Jose Mourinho anymore, Wayne Rooney and his representatives were looking at options elsewhere with a move to China being touted as a distinct possibility.
He settled his short-term future by stating that he wished to remain at United and be a part of what he described as an exciting period for the club. However, there were very few who were actually buying that story as an Old Trafford exit beckoned for the now 31-year-old.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic's stellar goal-scoring campaign meant Rooney was not the preferred option for Mourinho in the 2016/17 campaign and even after the Swedish international was sidelined with a horrific injury, it was evident that Rooney was not a part of the Portuguese’s plans for the future.
The big-money move for Romelu Lukaku confirmed that fact and after being initially linked with Stoke City and West Ham United, Rooney chose to return to his boyhood club Everton, bringing his 13-year association with United to an end.
