More than 17 years since he debuted for Everton in the Premier League as a 16-year-old, England’s former captain and record goalscorer shows that he still has what it takes as he continues to perform for DC United in North America’s Major League Soccer.
Although he joined the Washington based club in the mid-season transfer window, Rooney’s natural ability saw him named DC United’s player of the season and top goal scorer after scoring 12 goals in 20 games in 2018, well against various sports betting tips given out various betting institutions supposedly in the know.
Even though his side were knocked out on penalties in the playoffs, Rooney earned himself a lot of fans in the capital after his performances helped to dramatically improve DC United’s position in the table from being 11th the previous year to finishing 4th and reaching the playoffs.
Aside from his goalscoring, Wayne has always had a great work ethic at all of the clubs he’s played for and he makes no exception at DC United, where he missed just 20 minutes last season and featured in 17 consecutive games.
Rooney was made captain after three games for DC and certainly leads by example and isn’t afraid to work hard all over the pitch, he won plaudits and was named the MLS player of the month in October 2018 after making a last-ditch tackle and assist which won the game and sent DC United into the play offs.
Now in his first full season for the Black and Reds, Rooney continues to impress, the 33-year-old forward has so far scored 11 goals and completed seven assists in 21 games, making him United’s top goalscorer and assister and the fourth-best goalscorer in the league. His professionalism and unrelenting work ethic has carried on from the previous season as he’s so far only missed one game due to a red card suspension.
It’s possible that age may be catching up with the veteran, however, as head coach Ben Olsen recently gave his captain permission to rest for their upcoming match against Atlanta. This kind of game management is needed to help get good performances out of athletes in the later stages of their careers and shows that despite his competitive drive, Rooney is still thinking of the big picture as the club prepares for the potential playoff games.
Rooney’s red hot form has helped DC in their league campaign, as they find themselves currently in 3rd position in the Eastern Conference of the MLS. As things stand they would enter the play offs but they’re just four points off of the top spot with eleven games remaining.
If Rooney continues to produce goals for DC as he has been doing, there’s a real chance of him leading his side to their first MLS trophy since 2004, back when Rooney first signed for Manchester United at 18 years old.
It remains to be seen if his goals will be enough to lead DC United to glory but one’s things for sure, Rooney has proved to the world that he still has the ability to compete at the top level and fans will remember the name Wayne Rooney.