The Story of Wayne Rooney's Manchester United Career in 10 Games
Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney has had a remarkable career at the club so far. He looks set to become the club's all-time top goalscorer, and will certainly be remembered as a key figure in the club's history.
It has not all been positive, of course, as he has twice looked close to moving away from the club, and his performances have not always been stellar.
However, he has also been responsible for creating some magical moments, which will be etched into the memories of those who witnessed them for a very long time.
By necessity, this list cannot cover all the key incidents that have happened during Rooney's time at the club. There have been far too many.
With that in mind, let's take a look at Rooney's career at United through the prism of 10 key games.
Manchester United 6 Fenerbahce 2: 28 September 2004
1 of 10
Rooney's debut at Manchester United may have belonged in this list of games simply because it was his first. However, it is actually here because it was one of the most electric debuts any player has ever had at the club.
Signed for a lot of money, at a very young age, Rooney may have felt like he had a good deal to prove. However, if he was feeling the pressure, he did not show it, as he racked up a Champions League hat-trick.
He had announced his arrival in spectacular fashion.
Manchester United 2 Newcatle United 1: 24 April 2005
2 of 10
Manchester United were not having a particularly good game. Behind to Darren Ambrose's first-half goal, there was a disjointed quality to the performance.
A midfield of Roy Keane, Darren Fletcher, Quinton Fortune and Ryan Giggs were struggling to impose themselves on Newcastle United.
Rooney was booked for a challenge on James Milner, and had a heated discussion with the referee. Moments later, he channelled that anger and frustration into one of the finest goals he has ever scored. A headed clearance floated out to where he stood, unmarked, around 25 yards out from goal, and Rooney let fly a spectacular volley.
Once he had scored, the ball bounced out of the net into the path of his feet, and he slammed it into the net again. Rooney's frustrations were not yet fully expressed, as his snarling, fist-pumping celebration showed, but the goal that was borne of them stands as one of the all-time greats.
Manchester United 4 Wigan Athletic 0: 26 February 2006
3 of 10
Rooney's first trophy at United was the 2005/06 Carling Cup. He was Man of the Match in the final, scoring a brace, and linking up well with Cristiano Ronaldo. It was a performance which contained the seeds of what was to come, as Sir Alex Ferguson's last world-beating side began to take shape.
It was clear that Rooney enjoyed his first taste of silverware enough to be hungry for more. Two years later, Rooney and Ronaldo would be celebrating winning the Champions League.
Manchester United 3 Arsenal 1: 5 May 2009
4 of 10
Having won the Champions League in 2008, United looked favourites to win it again by May 2009. Whilst that was not to be, the semi-final second-leg win over Arsenal showed Rooney and Ronaldo at their brilliant best.
United's third goal that day came from a breathtaking, brutal counter-attack. Ji-Sung Park fed Rooney who sprinted with the ball before laying a beautifully weighted pass into Ronaldo's path.
The two of them looked unstoppable that night. That goal was also somehow symbolic of Rooney's role in the team during the era of Ronaldo's dominance. An unselfish support act, but a brilliant one, who played the role perfectly.
Manchester United 2 Wigan Athletic 0: 20 November 2010
5 of 10
This was Rooney's first game for the club following his public statement of intent to leave the club in which he cited a lack of ambition on the club's part (h/t Sky Sports).
Rooney's apparent attempt to leave United came as a genuine shock to fans, and it was difficult to know how to react once he agreed to stay.
Nabil Hassan, writing for BBC Sport, claimed after the game:
"United waited until the hour before introducing Rooney and his return from a five-week absence was met with cheers and jeers from the Old Trafford faithful, with his bitter contract negotiations that resulted in him belatedly signing a new five-year deal still fresh in the memory.
"
This was the first time since Rooney had signed that he played at Old Trafford as anything other than a hero. For some, irreparable damage was done to the relationship between the player and the fans during that period. For others, it was a time to forgive and forget.
Manchester United 2 Manchester City 1: 12 February 2011
6 of 10
What better way to rebuild a damaged relationship with fans than by scoring an absolute wonder-goal to win a Manchester derby?
Perhaps the only way better would be to score an absolute wonder-goal to win a Manchester derby which also contributes enormously towards your team's momentum in winning a record-breaking 19th league title.
Rooney, of course, did just that. All may not have been forgiven, but, in that moment, a good deal of repair work was done. It was a stunning goal and one which reinforced Rooney's importance to United.
Manchester United 1 Barcelona 3: 28 May 2011
7 of 10
United were thoroughly outclassed during the 2011 Champions League final. Not many United players that day looked like they could have improved the wonderful Barcelona side who had just destroyed them. Rooney was perhaps alone in looking like he might have done.
His goal was celebrated wildly by United fans all over the world as it brought them level at 1-1, in spite of Barca's dominance.
Rooney did everything he could that day, but it was not enough. However, his goal offered a light in the darkness, and his overall performance was excellent. He was now United's undisputed main man.
Manchester United 1 Real Madrid 2: 5 March 2013
8 of 10
In the 2011 Champions League final it was clear that Rooney was United's talisman. However, by the time Real Madrid came to town in 2013, things had changed dramatically.
Rooney had featured in the first leg, but was dropped from the second. Robin van Persie had been signed in the previous summer, and Danny Welbeck and he lead the line, as United sought to play with discipline and energy.
Rooney's absence from the game may have been a simple tactical decision, but it reverberated, and seemed to symbolise a change in Rooney's United status.
Manchester United 0 Chelsea 0: 26 August 2013
9 of 10
After a summer of speculation linking Rooney with a move to Chelsea, per Steve Brenner of the Guardian, it was only fitting that United's first opponents of the 2013/14 club should be Jose Mourinho's men.
Writing after the somewhat drab 0-0 draw, David Moyes' first in charge of United, Phil McNulty of BBC Sport said:
"Rooney was the game's most dangerous player and was vociferously backed by United's supporters throughout - as well as receiving vocal support from the travelling Chelsea fans who still hold out hope he can be lured to Stamford Bridge despite Moyes' insistence he would not be sold.
"
After the game, Mourinho said of United, per the Metro:
"I think this club must be a very special club because in every club in the world when a player wants to leave they don’t support him, they give him a hard time. So I think this is a real special club with real special fans and I think at this moment he [Rooney] might want to stay, and if he says that we will be the first to respect that.
"
The crowd's overwhelmingly supportive response to Rooney seemed to seal the deal, and the player stayed on, signing a new contract, receiving fulsome praised from David Moyes and being granted the captaincy by Louis van Gaal.
Manchester United 1 Swansea City 2: 16 August 2014
10 of 10
Rooney's first game as United captain seems a fitting place to end this list.
United struggled, but Rooney scored a fine goal.
The game has its place here because it symbolises the fact that the story of Rooney's United career is far from over. In spite of the significant competition for places the Liverpudlian faces, Van Gaal has made Rooney his captain, and thus a key part of his plan.
It will be intriguing to see what kind of performances tell the tale of his next few years at the club.
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