Wayne Rooney was “unrecognisable” during his one-season return to Everton, according to Fabio Capello.
Rooney left Everton to join Manchester United in 2004 and spent 13 years at Old Trafford, scoring 253 goals and winning 16 trophies.
Why did Rooney’s Everton return fail? Five key things to know…
- After spending 13 years at Man Utd, Rooney returned to Goodison Park in 2017.
- The former England international was Everton’s top scorer last season with 11 goals.
- However, none of those goals came after the official appointment of Sam Allardyce on November 30th.
- Rooney left the club again in the summer of 2018 to join MLS side DC United.
- Ex-England boss Capello believes the Rooney at Everton was not the one he remembered during their spell together.
England’s record goalscorer returned to Goodison Park in 2017 but, despite finishing last season as Everton’s top scorer with 11 goals, he made a shock move to MLS side DC United in the summer.
Rooney played under Capello for the England national team between 2007 and 2012 and the Italian has said the player he saw on the pitch for the Merseysiders was not the one he remembers during that spell at international level.
“He decided to go to America, it is new football, different football,” the Italian said (via the Liverpool Echo).
“It is a new experience and a lot of Italian players go there to finish off their careers.
“Rooney is a good player, but I saw the season when he returned to Everton and he didn’t perform well. He was on the pitch but like another part of the team.
“It was not the Rooney I remember – fighting, running – nothing. He lost everything, all his characteristics.”
Subscribe to Squawka’s Youtube channel: sqwk.at/Squawka-Sub
Rooney: I’m still good enough for the Premier League
Following his departure to MLS in the summer, Rooney helped drag DC United from the foot of the Eastern Conference to the play-offs, scoring 12 goals along the way.
With that run of form came inevitable questions as to whether the 33-year-old could still cut it in the English top flight – questions Rooney has firmly answered.
“If I’m being honest, I know quality wise, I can still play in the Premier League,” he said recently.
“I know that. I’ve always been a confident person, and so I have high expectations of myself.
“I’ve come here expecting to do well and I think there was a surprise from people who have their opinions, which is fair enough, but I never doubted myself at all.”
DC United kick off their new season at home to last season’s MLS Cup winners, Atlanta United, on March 3.
The post “He lost everything” – Capello explains why Rooney’s Everton return failed appeared first on Squawka News.
From Squawka News https://ift.tt/2TZQPAm
No comments:
Post a Comment