“You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.” Some of you may remember this quote by Aaron Eckhart in the Dark Knight. This is a fair resemblance of Wayne Rooney’s time at Old Trafford. No doubt he will and always be a Man Utd legend but his last two years at Old Trafford were nowhere near his best and nobody wanted to say it out loud, but he had to go for the benefit of him and the club.
This weekend may see the return of the boy who once turned to the Red of Manchester from the Blue of Merseyside to become the clubs greatest ever player. In time, United supporters will speak of Wayne Rooney like the older generation did of Bobby Charlton and George Best. Fans understand the history of the club and some won’t appreciate just how good Charlton, Best, Law, etc. were in their heyday simply because they never saw them play.
I had the privilege of being at Old Trafford when Wayne Rooney scored a hat trick against in the 8-2 defeat of Arsenal and everything he touched that day was gold. Yes, Arsenal had a poor side but you can only beat what’s in front of you and he did it with style. His record says it for itself;
253 goals scored – Record for any United player
Hat Trick on his debut vs Fenerbahce
Champions League Winner
5x Premier League Winner
FA Cup Winner
4x League Cup Winner
Fifa World Club Cup Winner
Europa League Winner
5x Community Shield Winner
Player of the year – 08/09
Sunday will not just emotional for Wayne Rooney, but also for the United fans as they welcome back Wayne Rooney to the Theatre of Dreams. "Veni, vidi, vici" is a Latin phrase attributed to Julius Ceaser which is apt for Wayne Rooney career at United, “He came, he saw, he conquered”.