Wayne rooney is not the key to england's success

Pullup Addict SG

The whole of england does not rely on just one man, rooney. Engalnd is more than that and i am sick and tired of people saying that if only england had rooney for the paraguay match, things would be different. Well, let me be brutally honest and say that rooney is not as good as everyone thinks he is. have you guys ever carefully scrutinised rooney’s playing style. He almost always charges with the ball before blasting it and hopes that god steers it in for him. he is virtually one-dimensional and seems to be interested in scoring beautiful goals instead of lots of goals. He is not a half chance striker like shevchenko or paulo wanchope who can spot and take advantage of half-chances. he is the kind who needs lots of playmaking support before he can score a goal. he needs to develop his game and become more active and dangerous in the penalty area where he can poach a lot more goals instead of charging like a runaway rhino and then blasting to the heavens. I mean, have u seen him score a goal with a header before?? Please do not misunderstand me, i am an england fan and believe that rooney is the best england has to offer but i firmly believe that england needs to play more as a team and to do so they need to refocus from rooney and get a new captain to gel them together. Beckham is no captain material, that honour goes to either gerrard or terry. a new captain can gel the team together to play cohesively. Only then can england become good.

JLennon SG

i disagree that he is one dimensional player and have to rely on playmakers. Actually he is the playmaker of the england team. the amazing thing about the WC qualifiers is that rooney NEVER SCORED a single goal but his contributions and assists were crucial to the team’s success.

Patrik SG

Rooney is a good player.
But seriously he is over rated.Just like England.
Just one injury and the newspaper everyday reporting about him.
As if England MUST have Rooney to win the world cup.
If dun have,den might as well give up.
zzzzzzz

dragg SG

one player can change a team in a cup competition.

remember paolo rossi?

JLennon SG

and maradona. no finer example of reliance by a football nation on an individual.

paolo rossi and the rest of italy were terrible in the group stages of the 82 WC. they gradually picked up their game to go on and win the WC.

T.Ryousuke SG

He is a player can affect the performance of the team, whether is assist or solo. His temperament do play a part to keep the team work harder and that’s wat Beck is lack of. If he is being mark and not given the support from the team he will easily grow frustrated and lost focus. With his kind of character, he can’t be a key man. But if the team work together, he can be the man to lead the attack from the midfield. He do command some respect from his team mate at this age. And with his physical advantage, where Joe and Frank is lack of, he is the only men can rub shoulder to shoulder with the big boys, then come the quick owen to support up front. He is the missing link between midfield and striker for a direct attacking formation where crosses is no longer a supply line.

T.Ryousuke SG

But if I am the opponent, will make sure the back four have an eye on him. Not to man mark him, make sure he will not have time on the ball.
And when England going for counter attack, he is the first one to look out for and man mark. At least he is the key man to pay attention to.

JLennon SG

if i am the opponent in this WC, i will try to break his metatarsals again. Laughing he is very quick on the ball and his first touch can leave markers floundering. not an easy player to mark.

T.Ryousuke SG

Since you say liao, that what I will do if I'm the defender and make sure he cannot stand again.

That is a most common and easiest way, think Sven will think hard before send him out at this stage.

JLennon SG

I am sure Sven and every other managers will be aware of the fragile state of his recently healed toe. unless desperate, Sven better not be too foolhardy to send him on to gain 'match fitness'.

T.Ryousuke SG

Maybe send in as sub when they are 2 goal up in the last 15 min.

Agenda SG

Playmaker?

He's a natural striker minus the pace and add the weight..

I say he's very over-rated and as a midfielder, he stands no chance against lampard and gerrard

OO_OO_OO SG

its more of a psycological thing. the team thinks that he is good, even the media over emphasises that.

so eriksson is smart to put him in the team because when he goes onto the field, the whole team feels lifted because subconscously they think they have a godlike striker in their team.

thus everyone plays better, and england scores goals.

when you know you're good, there is just the want to perform and live up to that reputation

MingFreeman SG

Maybe the England vs Paraguay result has to force the threadstarter to revise his opinions Mr. Green

MingFreeman SG

Roberto Baggio in USA 94 was also the hero for the Italians on their march to the final. They were also unconvincing in the group stages.

Davor Suker for Croatia in France98 is also worth considering

JLennon SG

Baggio single-handedly pulled them through in 94. Especially so against Nigeria and Bulgaria. Not sure whether Totti can do it for them this time round.

lpx88 SG

Interesting...An England's fan of Lampard being over-rated instead:

Lampard is vastly overrated, I don't know if you watched englands match yesterday but the sum total of his contribution to the team was around 5 long shots, 3 of which the goalkeeper had to save, for me he's still an £11m flop he just plays in a team that give's him loads of opportunity to shoot from distance and make late runs into the box (which he isn't that great at considering the opportunities he has at chelsea, scholes would be rated as the best in the world if he played in that chelsea team) but none of the consequences when he fails (because makelele is always covering his back)

wad u all think?I doubt the scholes part though.. Laughing

R3SsH|n SG

its not just being physically on the pitch...its the belief that the players have in him...

that gives the other player confidence...

anhydrouscoppersulphate SG

england is not about rooney. people are jus bragging about this lad.
we can conclude that these "football fans" are either shallow or they know nothing about soccer.

mett SG

[quote]Originally posted by lpx88:
[b]Interesting...An England's fan of Lampard being over-rated instead

Finally... someone who agrees that lampard is over-rated. He only looks good coz makelele makes him looks good. Other than that, he's nothing. Look at the season that just ended as compared to the previous one. With essien on board, his goal ratio got messed up as well.