United - Rooney Battles On!

Besieged by the media and facing yet more accusations, from the tabloid press, about his private life, Wayne Rooney would have been glad to seek sanctuary on the pitch in Basel last night.

He`s have been even more glad though to end a goal drought, in an England shirt, that had seen him fail to score in 11 consecutive games over a twelve month spell. His tenth minute goal last night was also his first, from open play, since 30th March.

The fact that it was celebrated with the usual aplomb is probably an indication of the turmoil Wayne is currently experiencing although his national coach, Fabio Capello, seemed pleased enough with his performance, particularly in his new wandering role, with Fabio commenting post match,

"Wayne Rooney played very well. He was okay mentally. It helped scoring the goal too."

"I told you before the game he had been okay in training. The players can focus on the game alone. He did that today. He was really happy at the end, as were the other players."

It`ll be interesting to see if that happiness lasted long after returning to these shores though. Another keen to express his thoughts on Wayne`s performance last night was the England captain, Steven Gerrard.

Gerrard, still deputizing in that role for the injured Rio Ferdinand, had this to say when confronted by the inevitable question at the post match press inquest,

"It was great for Wayne. He was terrific."

"All the talk before was about Wayne, so it was nice for him to get that early goal. I`m sure that helped his performance."

Basel might have proven to be a decent enough refuge for the under-siege Rooney but we have a feeling that Goodison Park, this Saturday, may be an altogether different proposition!



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