Captain Rooney has a alot of responsibility on his shoulders
After it was announced recently by Louis Van Gaal that he is happy with his strike-force of Rooney, Wilson and Chicharito, some fans would be excused for feeling slightly anxious as to whether this trio could supply the goals enough to win title. Two games into the season: A quiet outing against Tottenham Hotspur and a below average performance away at Aston Villa, Wayne Rooney seems to be under great scrutiny early on. With many, believing Rooney hasn't got it in him to play as an out and out striker, manager Louis Van Gaal has re-iterated his belief in the United number 10.
"I always have confidence in my players, but we don't only have Wayne Rooney in the strikers position" Van Gaal also pointed out that he has Wilson, Chicharito and now Adnan Januzaj who he considers to now be able to play as a striker. The Dutchman wouldn't be wrong to back his Captain either, the England man has an impressive record in the Premier league scoring 230 goals in 482 games to date, meaning he averages a goal every 2.1 games. Not to mention he has notched up some goals against very impressive European opposition, most notably goals against Barcelona in the 2011 Champions league final, AC Milan and Roma.
Rooney's quality is not to be doubted, his infamous derby day winner back in 2011
You would certainly be a fool to claim that Wayne Rooney had lost his magic touch. The former Everton forward has been known to go through dry spells all throughout his career, however he has certainly produced for Manchester United and England on some of the biggest stages. Wembley 2011, Rooney produced a super strike to equalize against the Catalan giants, his red devil debut with a hat-trick against Fenerbache, his Carling cup semi final goal against neighbours City to send United to Wembley. Wayne Rooney has the quality no doubt, is it fair to say he's just going through a bad spell?
Captain Fantastic: Rooney opens the scoring against the old enemy Liverpool
In a recent interview, Rooney himself admitted that he has in fact been playing below par: "I'm an honest guy, I know when i don't play well and against Aston Villa I was below my standards"
the forward went onto say: "It's just a case of getting the chances and taking them, which hopefully I'm going to do soon"
Rooney has always seemed to contribute to the cause however, he finished last season as United's top scorer, despite playing a large chunk of the season in midfield, he still managed to notch up 14 goals, which isn't too bad a return considering he wasn't the main striker. Perhaps too much pressure is being placed on the Captain, however it's hard not too after big name departures such as Robin Van Persie and Radamel Falcao, leaving Rooney to be seen by anyone as the new main man.
All in all, its only been two games so far this campaign, so perhaps pundits and fans are doubting too early, however its been seen in seasons such as 2011-12, when Rooney spearheaded the United attack that he ended the year with his highest ever tally of 34 goals, a feat he repeated back in 2008-2009 playing a similar role. Could Manchester United fans possibly see a repeat of previous glories? We will just have to wait and see.
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