Manchester United were back to winning ways past weekend on their trip to Wales as Paul Pogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic were on target for the Red Devils. Though both players were in top form, one player who silently did his work was the skipper Wayne Rooney. A regular started for United at the start of the season, the England international failed to have any kind of an impact and was dropped by Mourinho for the last few games. However, Mourinho’s men were still not able to get the business done leaving Mourinho with no choice but to trust the skipper of the side.
Rooney repaid the faith and took full advantage of the chance, registering a couple of assists and playing a part for all three goals on the night for United and putting in his best performance of the new season. He started a league game for the first time in 5 games for the club and there are sections of fans who are sure that it was a spark in a dying candle. Swansea are a struggling side that have not been able to get more than a point in any of their last 7 games in the league. They have not been at their best in any department and it was a game they were low on confidence.
Wayne Rooney: Has registered 2+ assists in a Premier League match for the first time since December 2013 (vs West Ham) #mufc
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) November 6, 2016
With due respect to the quality in their side, Swansea are now currently playing in a way that is reflective of their league position and there are not many teams that would not take all three points if they continue their form. But that being said, this game might be a start of a new season for Wayne Rooney where he might help them to the top of the table. He is still one of the most effective players in Europe at the moment and he is just a few goals away from being a record goal scorer for Manchester United. He is a phenomenal player who can improve most sides but if he cannot be consistent, he is sure to face the wrath of the fans and the manager and this leave his side reeling in the middle of the table.
100 – Wayne Rooney has become the third player to assist 100 Premier League goals (after Ryan Giggs and Frank Lampard). Creative.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) November 6, 2016
He is not the young Evertonian anymore who could just rip apart defense in the blink of an eye but is still a player who can help Mourinho’s cause. His movement and creative play against Swansea was not out of the world, but it did the trick. It was an effort to bring some normalcy in United’s game that lacked any kind of a spark. On more than one occasion, just one simple and intelligent pass was all that got United back on the attack and it was a game that did not ask too many questions of the Red Devils.
No doubt, that there is a small problem in the squad at Old Trafford and Mourinho must act quickly to solve it. Wayne Rooney might still be the answer but the Swansea game, especially in their current form, is not a yardstick to measure his contribution to the squad and Mourinho is brave enough, he is sure to get his answer when he meets his bitter friend Arsene Wenger at Old Trafford in a couple of week’s time.
Do you think Wayne Rooney has anything left to add to the Manchester United squad?