Rooney’s D.C. success silences doubters

WASHINGTON All of the doubters were wrong. About what Wayne Rooney could still do. About, more specifically, what he could do for D.C. United.

Now the English striker and his American club are headed to the Major League Soccer playoffs.

When reports first linked the 33-year-old Rooney to the team in the U.S. capital, he was past his peak as a superstar for his nation and Manchester United.

D.C. United, meanwhile, stood last in MLS, a league that’s a few rungs below Europe’s best. Four months after the deal was done, Rooney has led his new club to one of the most dramatic turnarounds in league history.

“Wayne’s influence on this team has been huge — so many factors, so many ways,” DCU coach Ben Olsen said. “But he’s not the only one that had something to prove around here. I’ve got something to prove. The team that was here last year has got something to prove. Everybody ’s here to kind of create their own career.”

Rooney’s arrival has coincided with a 12-4-3 run, including a fivegame winning streak — and ninegame unbeaten streak — heading into Sunday’s regular-season finale at Chicago. This from a team that was 2-7-5 before his MLS debut. He leads United with 12 goals after scoring twice in a 3-1 victory over New York City FC last weekend that clinched a playoff berth.

Rooney also has seven assists, meaning he’s played a role in 19 goals over the 19 games played by United since he joined.

There clearly was marketing potential in the move to the United States: MLS said Rooney’s United No. 9 is its fourth-highest-selling jersey in 2018.

But his play has silenced suggestions that his move to America from boyhood club Everton was only about the money.