Though he has been defended in some quarters, the England skipper is on the verge of losing the captaincy of the Three Lions after getting drunk following England’s 3-0 win over Scotland an action that was against interim manager Gareth Southgate earlier given orders.
Even at club level, Rooney has dropped tremendously in form. The once idol of Man United has been demoted to the bench, much to the delight of United fans despite Jose Mourinho insistence that the attacker remains part of his plans – a manager suffering from the same decline syndrome.
The United skipper has had a glorious career having played over 800 games for club and country and has some major honours at club level. But it is difficult to come to terms that such a blistering career is ending as it looks now for Rooney.
At 31 nothing stops him from being still effective and relevant also when former Man United team mate Cristiano Ronaldo – who is almost the same age as him- still commands a place in Real Madrid starting line-up. His dwindling form appears to be more pronounced than it actually is
His career seems over earlier than envisaged. He is England lead scorer and three short of Sir Bobby Charlton 249 goals for United. No doubt, his performance have been below expectations and the goal drought has refused to end. The onus is always on him to produce performances worthy of his status.
He has already confirmed his retirement from international football after the 2018 World Cup in Russia, still a little far from now and he will be 33 by then and there is no assurance of him being selected unless his form improves.
Other players have experienced this kind of decline without much publication but Rooney simply has no hidden place, from the media to his fans to pundits, he is their football topic – the price to pay for being a star.
Despite his current form, his contribution to England and United in the past decade remain unrivaled. Apart from Michael Carrick, he is the only player remained of the 2007/2008 class that won the Champions League in Russia in 2008.
We can only wish he is able to rediscover his form and relaunch himself. Not too late.