1 week Ago By [email protected] (Felix Keith)
Manchester United and England legend Wayne Rooney is underrated by fans and should be considered one of the greatest players of all time, according to Nicky Butt . Rooney retired from playing in 2021 having enjoyed a brilliant career which put him into the history books at United and with England. He notched a club-record 253 goals in 559 games for United, helping to win five Premier League titles and the Champions League , among other trophies, while bagging 53 goals for his country – a total only surpassed by Harry Kane .
He spent 13 years with United after joining from boyhood club Everton in 2004 and was a powerhouse up front for Sir Alex Ferguson . After leaving United, he returned to Everton before stints with DC United and Derby County – both clubs he managed as well. Now 39 years old, Rooney is focusing on coaching, and is with Plymouth in the Championship, but his former team-mate Butt thinks his achievements as a player have been slightly downplayed.
“I don’t think he’s appreciated as much as he should be, even with United fans,” Butt said on the Football’s Greatest podcast . “I don’t know if that’s the Liverpool-Manchester rivalry but he was phenomenal. He was a beast.
When people say their top-10 players of all time, not a lot of people would put him in that bracket but he should be, easily.” Rooney burst onto the scene at Everton as a teenager and spent two years with the club before United won the race for his signature. Legendary United midfielder Paul Scholes helped convince him to move to Old Trafford – although it was an easy sell.
“I played a small part in Rooney coming actually because he was playing for England by that point and the gaffer asked me to ring him,” Scholes said. “He sent me his phone number and told me he wanted to sign him. I called him up which was a bit weird because I had never really spoken to him before but I explained the situation and he said ‘I want to come, I would love to come’.
“He was out of this world for us. The sheer effort, the pressing and tackling, never mind the quality. Look at his record – most goals for United, second-most for England.
“He just wanted to come to United, give everything, win trophies and break records. He just doesn’t get the credit he deserves. There’s a lot of admiration there obviously because he was brilliant but it’s not quite enough.
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