Wayne Rooney
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Wayne Mark Rooney (born 24 October 1985) is widely considered to be one of the leading young talents in world football. In September 2005 he was selected by his fellow professionals as the inaugural FIFPro World Young Player of the Year. He currently plays for and the England national football team as a second striker, although the 2005/06 season has seen Rooney playing both centrally and on the left and right flanks. He wears the number 8 shirt for his club, and is generally given the number 9 for his country.
Rooney was brought up in a suburb of eastern Liverpool called Croxteth, where he and his two brothers attended De La Salle School.
Although he has been under an intense media spotlight since first arriving on the scene in 2002, it was not until his performances at the Template:Ec2 that he gained a reputation on the world stage, as he spearheaded the English attack, scoring 4 goals - England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson compared his impact to that made by the legendary Brazilian Pelé at a similar age during the 1958 World Cup. Other commentators have compared him to Manchester United legends Duncan Edwards and Eric Cantona and former Argentine star Diego Maradona.
He is currently the youngest player ever to play for the senior England team, making his debut on February 12, 2003, aged 17 years, 111 days. England's youngest ever player previous to this was James F. M. Prinsep of Clapham Rovers, who made his debut almost one and a quarter centuries before, on April 5, 1879, aged 17 years, 253 days. Rooney is also the youngest England scorer ever (17 years, 317 days).
Career
Premiership breakthrough
Rooney first gained national prominence in October 2002 when he became the youngest* goal scorer in the history of the Premiership at 16 years and 360 days of age, while playing for Everton. His spectacular goal was a last-minute winner against the then-League champions Arsenal that consigned them to their first league defeat in almost a year. Coincidentally, Wayne Rooney also played a huge role in ending Arsenal's record unbeaten run, winning a penalty and scoring the second goal, in Manchester United's 2-0 victory over Arsenal in October 2004 - Arsenal's first Premiership defeat in 50 games. At the end of 2002 he won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Young Personality award.
* This record has since been surpassed by James Milner, while playing for Leeds on 26 December 2003. He was 16 years 357 days. On 10 April 2005, James Vaughan while playing for Everton, scored a Premiership goal on his debut, making him, at 16 years and 271 days old, the youngest Premiership goal scorer to date (Dec 2005).
England career
He has also figured prominently in recent England international matches, after having become the youngest ever player to play for England, in a friendly against Australia, in February 2003 and also set a record as the youngest player to score for England. In 2004 Rooney became the youngest player ever to score in the European Football Championships on 17 June 2004 when he scored twice against Switzerland; however the Swiss player, Johan Vonlanthen, broke this record against France four days later. Rooney has shown a darker side to his game, often losing his temper. This was most notable when he reacted violently in a game against Spain on the 19 November 2004. In that game Rooney was substituted by his manager Sven Goran Eriksson to avoid being sent off. As of 13 November 2005 he has played for England 28 times and has scored 11 international goals
Transfers
Before turning 17 and becoming eligible for a professional contract, he was playing for £100 a week and living with his family on a council estate. Now, the teenage sensation has raised that several times and earns an estimated £50,000 (€73,500 / $90,000) a week. Following intense media coverage of Rooney at the 2004 European Championships, Everton claimed that they would not transfer his contract for less than 50 million pounds. The club offered Rooney a new contract for £50,000 a week. This, however, was turned down by Rooney on the 27 August 2004, leaving Manchester United and Newcastle United to battle for his services.
The Times newspaper reported rumours that Newcastle's initial bid was made at the request of Rooney's agent, who eventually made £1.5 million from the deal and employs the son of the Newcastle United chairman. In return for making a bid that would force Manchester United to try to buy the player a year earlier than they had planned. Suspicions were further raised because at that point in time Newcastle United had little need for a striker having already got three proven international forwards at the club. The Newcastle United bid succeeded in forcing Manchester United to enter the bidding. Rooney handed in a transfer request to Everton and on 31 August 2004 Rooney signed for Manchester United after a deal worth up to £27 million was agreed. The deal took place in spectacular fashion and was concluded hours before the transfer deadline.
The initial fee of £22m is paid directly to Everton Football Club; the rest of the money depends on appearances and/or success at Manchester United and/or England. It is unlikely the fee will reach the maximum £27m due to the complex nature of the contract drawn up by the two clubs. A final fee in the region of £25m is more likely. He made his début for the club on 28 September, 2004 in the UEFA Champions League against Fenerbahçe, scoring a hat-trick and also an assist (the match finished in a 6-2 win for United).
Rooney's transfer fee is the second highest for an exclusively British deal, with only his Manchester United team-mate, Rio Ferdinand, commanding a higher fee. Rooney does however have the honour of being the most expensive teenage footballer ever, being only 18 when Manchester United spent nearly 90% of their entire seasonal transfer budget on him.
Rooney is expected to compete with Louis Saha, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Giuseppe Rossi for a starting place with Ruud van Nistelrooy.
For the 2005/06 season, Rooney initially started playing in wider positions that his more favoured central role. Pundits and fans alike agreed that he seemed less effective in such positions, and eventually, after Manchester United's poor run of form sparked a media debate about whether the Premiership was getting boring; Sir Alex Ferguson moved him back to his stronger position, playing behind van Nistelrooy as a second striker.
Personal life
Rooney has rarely been out of the media spotlight since his emergence, and has received criticism for both his relationship with "tag-along" fiancée Coleen McLoughlin, who is villified in the tabloid press for her notorious shopping-habits.
Rooney has also received criticism for frequenting a brothel on Merseyside and a series of spats with his fiancée in public. Most recently, Rooney was caught on CCTV in a nightclub with an admirer, and is reportedly "in the last chance saloon" with McLoughlin according to several tabloid papers.
Perhaps less well known is his commitment to raising money for Claire House and Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool, and also his role as ambassador for SOS Children UK. As a member of the Manchester United side, he is also obligated to take part in charity and promotional work for UNICEF.
Temper Problems
Rooney has become famous for his on-pitch tantrums. He has become renowned for using "fuck" on many occasions. He most recently in September 2005, against Northern Ireland had an on-field outburst at the England captain David Beckham, but since the pair have played down the bust-up. Rooney has pledged to keep his temper under control, but it is still a major tactic for opposing teams to wind Rooney up to affect his concentration
External links
Profiles
- Wayne Rooney biography from manutd.com
- Wayne Rooney biography from thefa.com by The Football Association
News stories about Wayne Rooney from BBC News Online
- George Best hails Wayne Rooney
- David Beckham says Rooney will deliver
- Alex Ferguson puts his faith in Rooney
- Wayne Rooney gets his ManUtd career off to a dream start
- 'Rooneys Bar' pub name may damage Rooney
- Wayne Rooney career statistics
- Rooney's road to stardom
- Rooney celebrates wonder strikes
- Rooney named European 'Golden Boy'
- Wayne Rooney diary from 2004 European Football Championship
- Rooney secures PFA young player award 2005
- Rooney dropped by school chiefs