England

Wayne Rooney must accept a lesser role at Manchester United

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

foxsports

Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney will have to accept a lesser role at Old Trafford if he is to continue playing football at the top-level.

It was on Saturday afternoon when Jose Mourinho shocked the world by dropping his captain Wayne Rooney on the bench. Three hours later, Manchester United had coasted to an emphatic win over the reigning Premier League champions Leicester City. And their club captain was consigned to just 10 minutes off the bench, long after the result was secured.

The fact that on the day Rooney was dropped, his teammates played their best football of the season, does not make good reading for the 30-year-old. It felt as if the shackles had been removed, the stains of the joyless van Gaal era had been washed out. United looked like a completely different side, playing with confidence and freedom without their captain.

Why Paul Pogba's performance vs. Leicester means it's only a matter of time before Rooney's Man Utd career is over – https://t.co/rXkdBohAM0 pic.twitter.com/0YqdC1YYZI

— Squawka Football (@Squawka) September 26, 2016

Jose Mourinho, speaking after the game said that he dropped Rooney because he needed faster players around Zlatan Ibrahimovic. That tactic worked quite well for the red devils, as they played with high intensity and tempo. Paul Pogba, given much more freedom, put in a man-of-the-match performance. United were threatening on the counter attack, and played with great fluidity. That is something they were lacking in the presence of Rooney.

The England captain now faces a tough period now. He must adapt the way Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs did, if he is to prolong his United career. Rooney does not have the legs he did when he burst onto the scene over a decade ago.

And he needs to accept that he is no longer the first name on the team-sheet. Rooney must take this dropping on the chin, and show his worth on the training pitch. Otherwise, it won’t be long before we see him lining up in the MLS.