Wayne Rooney is a Manchester United legend no doubt, but is he among their greatest ever players?

When Manchester United forked out £27 million to sign an 18-year-old Wayne Rooney from Everton in the summer of 2004, the reactions went from one extreme to another. Many were excited and many raised their eyebrows. United fans were ecstatic as they had got one of England’s brightest hopes in many a generation, while Everton supporters couldn’t believe that one of their own had left them so soon.

Many questioned Manchester United’s manager at the time, Sir Alex Ferguson, as the fee was well above the norm back then and that too for a teenager. But many felt that if it worked out for both parties, then both player and club would enjoy a lot of success together. That is what Rooney does – he divides opinion. He has been doing so since he signed for United and he is doing so even today when he has become the club’s all-time top goal-scorer.

Rooney fizzed in a brilliant free-kick against Stoke City to rescue United a point in their quest to finish in the top four of the Premier League this season. But all the headlines were focused on Rooney and his record rather than United dropping another two points that they really shouldn’t have. The goal was his 250th for United in all competitions – one above Sir Bobby Charlton’s tally of 249, which had stood for a remarkable 44 years.

There was an outpouring of emotions from fans, players and commentators as soon as the goal went in. Social media was abuzz with all sorts of records that Rooney has broken at United and in the Premier League. He is the league’s second-highest scorer with 195 goals, behind Alan Shearer who scored 260 in his career. From that tally, Rooney has scored 180 for United and the other 15 came while playing for Everton.

He has won five Premier League titles, one Champions League, one FA Cup, two League Cups and one Club World Cup in his time with United. But for many it feels as though he could have won a lot more. If the United captain retires today with all that he has won at club level, there would be a sense of unfulfilled potential from many quarters. That is only because of the talent that he possess and the promise he showed when he announced himself back in 2002 against Arsenal with a brilliant late winner.

Flirtations with leaving United

In most clubs, their highest goal-scorer would be considered one of their greatest players, if not the greatest. Rooney is definitely one of United’s greatest-ever players, but can he be considered their absolute best? Here again, Rooney will divide many staunch United fans’ opinions. For many, loyalty plays a huge part in judging a player regardless of the talent and achievement.

Rooney did himself no favours when he publicly announced that he wanted to leave United in 2010. Reports emerged that he wanted to join cross-town rivals Manchester City, who had been bought by the wealthy Abu Dhabi United Group in 2008. But he did a complete U-turn two days later and signed a lucrative five-year deal to stay at Old Trafford.

It was reported that he put in a transfer request in 2013 again in Ferguson’s final season as manager. Rooney again didn’t force through with the transfer and went on to sign a five-and-a-half-year deal worth up to £300,000 per week in February 2014. It now seems that his dalliances with leaving United are behind him. It could well be that United could push him away as he is no longer the first name on the team sheet anymore.

These two events will always scar his time at United. But even if you analyse his performances rather than his off-field antics throughout his career at Old Trafford, a case can be made as to why he will not be considered as one of the club’s very best.

Best seasons and mixed emotions

When he arrived at United, there was so much expectation on his shoulders. United were entering a new era as Ferguson was revamping his squad with younger players. As he did at Everton, Rooney announced his arrival at United in fine fashion. The young forward scored a hat-trick on debut against Fenerbahce in the Champions League.

In his first two seasons at United, Rooney had only won the League Cup. But with Ferguson’s revamp complete by the time the 2006-’07 season began, Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo led United to their first Premier League title in four years. While Rooney scored 14 in the league as a forward, Ronald notched 17 as a winger. The Portuguese rightly won most of the plaudits at the end of the season.

The 2007-’08 campaign proved to be even better as United won the Premier League again and also lifted the Champions League trophy. While Rooney scored 12 in the league and 18 overall, Ronaldo scored 31 in the league and 42 overall. By this time, Ronaldo was well above his peers and Rooney sacrificed his game to accommodate his more prolific teammate.

The following season, United again won the Premier League, as they completed a hat-trick of league wins. They won the League Cup as well, but fell short at the last hurdle in the Champions League as they lost 0-2 to Barcelona in the final, thereby failing to become the first team to successfully defend the trophy in it’s new form. Rooney played an important part as he scored 12 in the league and 20 overall. But Ronaldo again trumped his teammate in the scoring charts with 18 in the league and 26 overall.

These three seasons will always be known as the Ronaldo Years. The Portuguese was also crowned as the world’s best player, but he soon left United to join Real Madrid after the defeat to Barcelona. Carlos Tevez also left to join bitter rivals Manchester City the same summer. Now, Rooney was the focal point for United. In the absence of both Ronaldo and Tevez, he flourished.

Rooney almost single-handedly won United an unprecedented fourth straight Premier League title the following season. He scored 26 goals in the league and 34 overall, but the Red Devils finished one point behind Chelsea in the league. For all his efforts, Rooney only had the League Cup to show for that season. It was the lack of stellar acquisitions in the wake of Ronaldo and Tevez’s departures that led Rooney to question United’s ambitions and publicly asked to leave them in 2010.

United won the 2010-’11 Premier League title thanks more to a team effort rather than one man dominating the headlines. They again lost to Barcelona in the Champions League final that season. It was a mixed campaign for Rooney as he started it wanting to leave, then was dousing those flames and later helped United win the league title.

The next season saw Rooney hit his stride again as he scored 27 goals in the league and 34 overall. But this time United and Rooney would be denied the Premier League title on goal difference by Manchester City in the very last minute of the campaign. It was a cruel blow and Rooney didn’t have medals to show for his individual efforts that season.

Ferguson then bought Robin van Persie from Arsenal and the Dutchman led United’s charge to their 20th league title. Despite contributing to United’s success, Rooney was not the main man anymore. This led to his supposed transfer request in 2013. That was also the end of the glory years as United have struggled ever since Ferguson retired at the end of that season.

The general consensus is that United didn’t win the big titles in Rooney’s best years individually. When they did win their multiple Premier League titles and the Champions League, the likes of Ronaldo and Van Persie stole the headlines.

Rooney breaking United’s all-time goal-scoring record can also be seen as a consequence of a player staying long enough at the same club to do so. For the majority of his career at the club, Rooney has played as a forward. He has also been United’s main penalty-taker since Ronaldo left the club. All these add up to his tally.

Club legend

But there is no denying the fact that Rooney is a club legend. The goal-scoring charts don’t show his sacrifice as a player to help his teammates score more goals. They don’t show his tracking back and willing displays to help out the defence in any way possible. Very few forwards are as unselfish as Rooney. He could’ve broken the record much sooner had he not allowed others to take all those penalties and free-kicks. Many times he chose to assist his teammates when going for goal might also have been an option.

He is joint-third with Cesc Fabregas in the list of the Premier League’s all-time assist providers with 101. Only Ryan Giggs (162) and Frank Lampard (102) are above him and both of them have retired. All this only showcases his contribution to the success he has had with United.

When Rooney emerged along with the likes of Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in the mid 2000s, many felt it was the Englishman who was the better talent. This could be down to the British media, but Rooney winning the inaugural FIFPro Young Player of the Year award in 2005 proved that he was up there. Seeing the trio’s careers pan out over the next decade, it’s clear that Rooney has not hit the stratospheric heights like the other two.

Ronaldo and Messi are global icons and are considered as two of the greatest-ever players in the history of football. Rooney won’t be mentioned in the same breath. There are many reasons as to why Rooney didn’t push on like both his peers. But one glance at his trophy cabinet proves that he has been very successful.

If United had won the league titles in 2009-’10 and 2011-’12, where they lost by a single point and on goal difference respectively, Rooney would have seven Premier League winners’ medals. If United had not met the greatest club team ever in the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals, he could’ve won two more Champions League titles.

There are a lot of ifs and buts and that is why Rooney divides opinion. But one thing is for certain – Wayne Rooney can and should be mentioned along the likes of Bobby Charlton, Ryan Giggs, Denis Law, George Best, Paul Scholes and Cristiano Ronaldo in the pantheon of Manchester United’s greatest-ever players. He is truly a club legend.