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Wayne Rooney is due to make his return to Manchester United’s first team next week when they play Glasgow Rangers in the Champions League. I know there is speculation he will play for a few minutes against Wigan with the hope of him getting a few soft goals to rebuild his confidence. For my part, I don’t think he’ll play Saturday, but the fact his mental fitness is such a subject of discussion brings up the point I have made before, Rooney may have gone off the same cliff as Paul Gascoigne.
Now its a fact Rooney hasn’t been physically fit for some time, and the trip to Nike HQ up in Oregon to rebuild his battered body was needed. The question is, why did he have to go all the way to Oregon to do it? It seem to me, that the answer is easily apparent, he couldn’t stand the glares of the media and his wife anymore; he needed to get away. But one has to ask, how much psychological treatment did he receive while he was there? Hopefully, all that he needed, but no will know if whatever regiment of therapy he was on has been successful until he plays in a Champions League match against a team whose fans are known for their creative chants and songs, honed against the men in Celtic jerseys for generations. For my part, I think he has mostly recovered, and here’s my reason why. This video was recently released of Rooney working on the set of the “Boom” campaign Nike are using to flog their Pro Combat line.
Look at him, he looks crushed, broken, and tired at first. But count how many times he smiles, not awkwardly, but genuinely, when he talks about scoring goals and I think you’ll understand why I think he has the hunger to score back in his belly. Look for a gola or two in his near future.
Written by: Matthew Wall, editor, soccerprose.com
