Player Focus: New Year New Roo Inspiring United in Top-Four Pursuit
Let’s not beat around the bush here, Wayne Rooney endured a terrible opening half of the season. The England international was sluggish in the final third, with a lackadaisical first touch often breaking down attacks rather than maintaining the pressure on the opposition defence. However, it appears as though Rooney has turned a corner. Of the seven league goals the 30-year-old has netted, five have come in 2016, while two of his three assists in England’s top tier have also come this calendar year.
Louis van Gaal may be under pressure to turn the club’s fortunes around, with his incarnation of possession based football boring many to tears. However, the performance against Stoke on Tuesday night offered a glimmer of hope for the fans. Jesse Lingard scored the club’s first league goal in the opening 45 minutes at Old Trafford this term, before Anthony Martial added a stunning second midway through the first half.
It was the first time United have scored two goals in 45 minutes in a league game since the 4-2 Manchester Derby win back in April 2015. Indeed, supporters will be hopeful that United can build on what is arguably the best performance of the season so far. Against a Stoke side that is relatively solid defensively, the ease with which they carved the Potters apart is cause for optimism as United strive to secure a second successive top-four finish.
Indeed, the faith placed in the system by Van Gaal, and as such Rooney, will be something the Dutchman hopes to be repaid. With the latter, that is certainly looking to be the case. When factoring in the FA Cup, the England captain has netted seven times in all competitions in 2016, including a wonderful curling effort against Derby County. Like Cesc Fabregas for Chelsea, Rooney is one who appears to be getting back to his best form in the New Year.
The best way to highlight this is that Rooney's five goals and two assists in five Premier League appearances this year is already just one shy of the six goals and two assists to his name in 33 appearances in 2015. As one might expect, his WhoScored rating has also improved, rising significantly from 6.88 to 7.75, the latter figure the ninth best of Premier League players to feature in at least three of five games this calendar year.
When comparing the two years, the key difference comes in the number of shots Rooney is averaging per game, with the figure in 2015 (2.2) rising significantly in 2016 (3.8). With Van Gaal deploying the experienced striker as the most advanced attacker, United are finally reaping the benefits with a rejuvenated Rooney spearheading the charge. While Van Gaal has often looked to his captain to lead from the front, his disappointing performances suggested the Dutchman could drop him into a more reserved role in order to accommodate Martial in attack.
Instead, however, the Frenchman has regularly been deployed out on the left flank, though with an inclination to drift infield, Martial will more often than not adopt the role of second striker, particularly with Rooney frequently operating somewhat freely across the final third. With the latter dragging defenders out of position, this opens up space for the former to capitalise upon, which he did excellently in the win over Stoke on Tuesday night, with Rooney turning provider for Martial to cap off a wonderful team move that started in the United penalty area.
Not only does this benefit the summer arrival, but it’s helping Rooney re-establish himself as the club’s main striker. Importantly, though, Van Gaal is demanding his captain remain closer to the opposition goal, thus ensuring United have a primary focal point to their attack. While his number of touches per game have dipped (56.8 to 46.2) this is due to Rooney not dropping closer to the midfield in order to apply pressure nearer to goal.
His passes may have dropped (42.5 to 32.8) but his successful final third passes are up regardless (12.5 to 13), while his number of key passes per game have also increased (1.3 to 2.4). While he is not involved as much in the build up play, Rooney is instead able to maximise his creative qualities further forward, which has seen him kick of 2016 with a bang. Often criticised in the past for straying from his position, the United and England skipper is now clearly adhering to the demands of his manager and instead allowing the midfield personnel to go about their duties.
As such, Rooney is winning possession in the midfield third marginally fewer times per game in 2016 (2.6 to 2.4), so he is still working hard for United, but rather than waste energy harassing the opposition in search of possession, he’s instead utilising his reserves in search of goals. Evidently, the New Year has been a re-awakening period for Rooney, which is indeed a boost as he looks to rediscover his best form for club and country, especially with Euro 2016 quickly approaching and the club still firmly in the hunt for silverware and a Champions League finish.
Wayne Rooney's form has picked up in 2016 following a disappointing start to the season and with a direct hand in seven goals in his five league games this year, it might be worth investing in the Manchester United striker ahead of their trip to Chelsea at up to £0.30p per share in the Buabook match market.
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CMON ROONEY!