So much has been said and written about Wayne Rooney that it’s all set up for him to star against Uruguay and we have a feeling it will be a good night for both him and England tonight.
As he plays for one of the biggest clubs in the Premier League, as he’s the highest-paid player in the Premier League and as he’s been in the spotlight since he was a teenager, Wayne Rooney shouldn’t really be surprised at the amount of attention being heaped on him at this World Cup, but even still, it has seemed a little overboard at times.
Even before the game against Italy, there were suggestions that England’s best team shouldn’t include the Manchester United striker, suggestions that only increased after he delivered an average performance while played out of position on the left wing, albeit it was from there that he delivered the pass of the night for Daniel Sturridge’s equaliser in the first half.
There can be no doubt that Rooney has underperformed in major tournaments for England – he hasn’t scored in the World Cup yet – but someone with his pedigree and his record at international level (39 goals in 93 appearances) arguably deserves a break.
We don’t think Roy Hodgson will drop him tonight; we think he’ll play him in a more familiar central role and that Rooney will repay that faith with a goal in an England victory over a Uruguay side that looked devoid of inspiration and quality against Costa Rica last time out.
A Rooney goal in an England win can be backed at 10/3 with Ladbrokes and when everyone is trotting out the inevitable ‘Rooney silences the critics’ line a little later on, feel free to come back and thank us for the tip.
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