FIFA World Cup 2014 - GROUP D [Uruguay, Costa Rica, England, Italy - 14/19/20/24 June] **spoilers**

Rooney was hyped too much and it went to his head. He plays how he wants and not how the team needs him.

I wouldn't be against dropping him. Sure he did set up the goal against Italy, but someone else could have done the same if he wasn't on the field.
 
Simple fact of the matter is that other teams 'starts' have performed,- Messi, Robben, Balotelli etc. Whether its because he is played out of position or has some mental black because of the pressure placed on him, the simple fact of the matter is that it is not happening for him, hasn't ever happened and you would have to be incredibly optimistic to put it all on Uruguay and believe it will start happening there. I think they should go for it, at least for a half, play him centrally and pray to God.
 
It won't ever happen because he relies on his physicality which obviously has waned (lol)

His first touch is diabolical and doesn't know what ball retention is and it always has been

It's alright playing for Man Utd when u had Berbatov and Ronaldo etc who are not only good physically but technically as well, but in England you just have the same type of player with roughly the same attributes playing in every single position

There is nobody in the England team with world class technical skills and it gets found out again and again. But people are too stupid to realise it because the issues get hidden when they play in the Premier League
 
Its interesting how the former "Golden Child" of English football now is splitting opinion so much and in jeopardy of not starting the next match. A few things
I observe about this.

1. Rooney was (in my opinion wrongly) considered to be 1 of Englands 2/3 World Class player. Hart and Gerrard being the others. If he is now not the best player available in any of the 3 attacking positions then he cannot be bracketed as World Class.

2. As a player he has regressed, never really fulfilling the potential he had in his early twenties. How much of this is down to fitness I think is debateable. He seems as fit as he has been for years and certainly wasn't shirking any running required of him on Saturday night. I think the problem is that he has lost any differentiating speed over short distance that he had as an 18yo and also doesn't have the ball skills to outwit defenders. The latter I put down to application. In the Equador warm up match Lambert showed more control, trickery and unpredictability then Rooney has for years. For me that evidences laziness or complacency on the part of the Rooney.

3. Wayne has become jack of all trades and master of none. Ferguson started this years ago after United got clattered in the Champions league. He reverted to a 4-3-3 or 4-5-1 formation often deploying Rooney on the left where he gave very good defensive cover for Patrice Evra. He also habitually dropped him into midfield. I think this has led to Rooney losing the ability to be the No.9 which was arguably where he performed best for United. Arguably his best season was 09/10 when partnered with Berbatov up front. However Ferguson obviously felt that there were better No.9s and therefore signed RVP.

I actually think ultimately he may end up as a more attacking CM. The only problem being his poor short range passing.

4. The pressure heaped on him is significant but when you sign £300k/week contracts then you have to deal with that. Its not a problem for Ronaldo or Messi. Players who have consistently performed at almost unbelievable levels
He has not had the best of seasons as Man Utd have struggled and every player's level fell. Its hard to pick that up again at the end of a season particularly when everyone is ****ging you off.

5. England are an average team. The Italy match for me highlighted that England have some eye catching individuals but still little pattern of play or ability to make the ball do the work at times where you need to either conserve energy or nullify the opposition. I think that is fundamentally just part of the shortcoming of the English PL. Sturridge and Sterling look jinky but I don't see any of the players forming particularly good partnerships or link ups the way you see with some of the other sides at the World Cup. I also don't see how playing Gerrard at Centre back effectively helps you build play from midfield especially when he is paired with the engine only Henderson. sure some of Englands players produced some exciting moments but as a team I thought they were well short of the Italians. It wasnt all about Pirlo, although he was magnificent, de Rossi and Verrati formed a very cohesive unit that allowed the 35yo to play.

I think it was significant that Englands players were suffering fatigue at the end of the match. The style of play isn't sustainable in those conditions for players who normally play in sub 15 degree temperatures and you can't acclimatise the week before an event. I think the manager needs a different plan and whether he picks Rooney or not is probably irrelevant.
 
~>Dg<~ said:
is rooney a out and out england striker ? = no.y.
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Who is saying he is? He should be played behind Sturridge as the out and out striker as he was with Owen. People seem to be ignoring the others created nothing.

Devlish said:
Simple fact of the matter is that other teams 'starts' have performed,- Messi, Robben, Balotelli etc. .
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What Messi who has scored all of two international goals in a world cup and has barely performed well at major tournaments and Balotelli who the italian public wanted dropped because he was performing to a similar level as rooney?

It's one game, i'd certainly give him this tournament behind sturridge and move on after that if it doesn't work.
 
Messi is actually a good player

He has technical skills and is very good physically. I dont think many players are able to change direction at the speed he can

Thicko England fans seem to think that being good physically just means running fast and up and down the pitch all game
 
I really don't see why talk of dropping Rooney is being taken in the way it is. It's one game, and he's one player. Yes, he's a very good player, just not for England so get him out and give someone else a chance to shine.
 
It never hurts to drop a player once in a while no matter how good they are, perhaps if Rooney realises that he is dispensable he might push himself more and be more flexible in terms of position.

I can't comment on how much Rooney is giving for the team but when you have a guy who is never dropped and gets record breaking contracts whenever he demands them he has little incentive to push himself to improve.

Despite how good both Messi and Ronaldo were a few years ago they have pushed one another to even greater heights by competing against one another for individual records/awards etc.
 
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Trusty said:
Change something as in move Rooney up front basically. He's not a left winger, he can do a job well there but he needs to be up top with Sturridge.
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He doesn't stay up top though, I remember in South Africa 2010 part of the reason we were so **** was Rooney dropping deep and leaving his strike partner isolated... nothing has changed in four years, no matter where you play him he just gets drawn towards the ball like a schoolkid in the playground.
 
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Gilly said:
I really don't see why talk of dropping Rooney is being taken in the way it is. It's one game, and he's one player. Yes, he's a very good player, just not for England so get him out and give someone else a chance to shine.
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He did create more goal scoring opportunities than Welbeck, Sturridge and Sterling combined. So you can see why he's important, plus his goal scoring record for England is very similar to that of Messi's for Argentina.

That said, I seem to recall hearing that Lallana created more goal scoring opportunities than any other player in the EPL last season. Roy hasn't got an easy choice to make.
 
toshj said:
That said, I seem to recall hearing that Lallana created more goal scoring opportunities than any other player in the EPL last season..
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What does that mean as a stat, would Baines have created more goalscoring opportunities than Rooney too because of the crosses he put in?

The only english player that got more assists than rooney was Gerrard. I'd like to see what 'creating goal scoring opportunities' amounts to. A cross in the box? Do you have a link to that or a comparison?
 
Rooney has lost it, he lost it years ago with his first spat with Ferguson. Same as Owen lost it another golden child.

Common denominator is there both scousers and have chips larger than Macaines on there shoulders.
 
K1LLSW1TCH said:
Love it when all the experts who don't watch club football suddenly come out of the woodwork for the World Cup. :p
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Maybe they are only posting on here because they aren't at the games. I tend to not post here of a matchday because I am at the match. And I doubt we have many coaches or players on here at a serious level so there are no experts despite what some people may think of their opinions. ;)
 
SPG said:
Rooney has lost it, he lost it years ago with his first spat with Ferguson.
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Yeah he went on to score 27 goals, 2nd only to RVP at Arsenal that year after the spat. He really lost it and has since been 2nd top English scorer and one of only a handful of United players to get any credit for trying this year.
 
mmj_uk said:
He doesn't stay up top though, I remember in South Africa 2010 part of the reason we were so **** was Rooney dropping deep and leaving his strike partner isolated... nothing has changed in four years, no matter where you play him he just gets drawn towards the ball like a schoolkid in the playground.
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Yeah, he does want to get involved, nothing wrong with that. Thats why he needs to be in the centre of the pitch ideally. Up top with Sturridge..

I'd like to see a flat 3 in the middle instead of 2, have stirling linking the attack and midfield with his turn of pace and ability to go past men in the middle of the pitch. We get our width from Baines and Johnson.

Who that flat 3 would be is the question.

Wilshire/Gerrard/Hendo?
 
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Guys I'm a Scot which will probably invalidate my comments here but remember the climate the game was played in scorching temps and 90% humidity. It'll be a different game on Friday I'm sure we will see a different England more attacking then.

Even as a Scot I can see you getting through the group after watching the other game.
 
jas72 said:
Guys I'm a Scot which will probably invalidate my comments here but remember the climate the game was played in scorching temps and 90% humidity. It'll be a different game on Friday I'm sure we will see a different England more attacking then.

Even as a Scot I can see you getting through the group after watching the other game.
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The weather conditions are irrelevant. The same applies to both teams.

If England are more attacking because it's cooler, then so will Uruguay be.
 
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