Rooney: Joining 200 club is a sweet moment
MANCHESTER: Wayne Rooney scored his 200th Premier League goal in Everton’s 1-1 draw at Manchester City on Monday and gave another display which showed his career is far from over.
Rooney’s 35th minute goal looked to have earned Everton a surprise victory at the Etihad Stadium before substitute Raheem Sterling volleyed in an 82nd minute equaliser.
Although he did not end as the match-winning hero, Rooney was able to savour the moment he became just the second player to reach 200 Premier League goals.
Former Newcastle and England striker Alan Shearer, who ended his career with 260 goals, welcomed Rooney to the exclusive club by tweeting: “It’s been lonely in this Premier League 200 club. Welcome and congratulations Wayne Rooney”.
“It was nice. To do it today in such an important game for us, with tough games coming up, it was a sweet moment and I am sure the red half of Manchester will have enjoyed it as well,” said Rooney who scored 183 of his goals in the red shirt of United.
Rooney’s move last month back to the club he has supported since his youth and where he made his professional debut, was questioned by some critics who wondered whether he might have run out of steam.
But the 31-year-old, who scored on his home debut against Stoke City last week, gave another display of clever passing and positioning as well as his trademark finishing.
“It is not bad for someone who is not fit anymore and can’t get about the pitch! I have always put a shift in for the team and tonight is no different,” he said. “The manager has made it clear he wants to play me in the attacking positions. I have done that throughout my career and the thing for me is to play. I didn’t play as much last year and if you don’t play you don’t get that match fitness.”
Rooney’s revival in blue has raised the issue of whether he could earn a recall to Gareth Southgate’s England squad ahead of next month’s internationals.
“I am focusing on Everton. I am sure I will speak to Gareth Southgate over the next few days and we will see what happens,” said the forward.
It was a familiar tale for City – waves of attacks, relentless pressure but missed chances meant Pep Guardiola’s side needed a late equaliser to draw at home to Everton.
In City’s defence, they had to play the entire second half with 10 men after full-back Kyle Walker was shown a red card on the stroke of halftime.
But while pleased with the spirit his team showed, City’s Spanish coach could not disguise his frustration with his side’s failure to convert their chances.
“The second half we made a good performance, similar like last season when we played them here. We created the chances in the first half but we did not finish them,” said Guardiola.
“We created chances, before their goal, three or four ... our amount of opportunities on target or close to target was good, we were there all the time but we never gave up.
“All you can do is try to create the chances. Maybe one day it will change. I think last season we were the team who made the most chances.”
Everton manager Ronald Koeman said despite the disappointment of conceding a late equaliser he was pleased with a point from a difficult trip.
“When you play at City it is always tough, how they play, how they try to play but I think the game plan was perfect, we had a good defensive organisation ... it was really tough, we had good man-marking,” he said. “But with the quality they have they will always create chances and you need to be a little bit lucky.
“We scored the goal, of course I am disappointed now to be one-nil up, 11 against 10, but I think we did wrong thing in the second half, we played too much long ball.” – Reuters