Roo’s the new Ibra says Roy
ROY HODGSON says Wayne Rooney can emulate Zlatan Ibrahimovic and keep playing until he is 38.
The Derby player-coach, 34, will return to the FA Cup at Selhurst Park tomorrow when Derby meet Crystal Palace.
Fellow former Manchester United star Ibrahimovic this week signed a deal with AC Milan at the age of 38.
And Palace boss Hodgson, who made Rooney his England captain in 2014, said: “I know how much he loves to play and he is still a very good footballer so I would be expecting him to be helping Derby as a player for a period of time to come.
“He is the same age as Gary Cahill and Gary has been exceptional for us this season.
“Age has absolutely no relevance to how you feel and how you are capable of performing in any walk of life. Why should football be any different?
“We have people running top companies dealing with billions of pounds who are a lot older than 34 and still capable of doing their job.
“It will be a question of when Wayne’s body tells him he can’t do this any more.
“But he doesn’t seem to be showing any signs of that at the moment.
“Whether he is 34 or 38 or 28, it doesn’t make a difference.”
Rooney won the FA Cup for the only time when United beat Palace in the 2016 final.
And Hodgson was England boss when Rooney, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard all won their 100th caps.
Two are managers in their own right, while Rooney has taken his first steps as a coach at Derby.
“Wayne is a leader type – there is no question of that,” added Hodgson.
Those leadership qualities are already being hailed by Derby’s players.
But they know to expect blunt criticism if they mess up.
Rooney impressed playing the whole game as skipper on his debut for the Rams as they beat Barnsley 2-1 in the Championship on Thursday.