Show Wayne some respect
RIO BLAST AT ROONEY CRITICS
RIO FERDINAND reckons if Wayne Rooney was Italian he’d be shown way more respect than he gets in England.
Former England and Manchester United star Ferdinand is dismayed that there’s such a rush to pension off senior English players.
Some fans and critics even want Roy Hodgson to dump 30-year-old Rooney – and go all guns blazing to Francerance next month with England’s neww young lions led by Tottenham duo Harry Kane and Dele Alli.
But BBC pundit Ferdinand (right) said: “I’m not sure the right word is ‘insulting’ – but in this countryry we dismiss our senior players very quickly.
“You look at Italy and especially top players like Daniele De Rossi and Gianluigi Buffon and in the past Paolo Maldini. They’ll go to tournaments in their late 30s, no questions asked almost. In England it’s like you get to 30 and suddenly you’re an old man.
“But experience counts for such a lot at a tournament – not just on the pitch.
“Senior players can implement what the manager wants – that’s what I found with some of the squads I was in. I don’t even understand why it was a debate if Wayne goes or not – he has to go.
“As we saw in the Chelsea-Tottenham game at the end of the season, a lot of those young Spurs players had nerves and a fear of losing.
“Sometimes young players need an old head to just say: ‘listen, relax and chill’ or ‘we have another game’ or ‘look there’s plenty of time to score’.
“There are those pivotal moments in tournaments – and not only on the pitch, but on the training ground and arou around the hotel.
“There are major pluses to h having people like Wayne Rooney around, whether he plays or not. But to even question whether a player like h him should go is astonishing.”
That’s a view backed up by fellow BBC pundit, and France legend, Thierry Henry, who said: “I was shocked when people were questioning that Rooney goes. Whether he starts is a different question, but some of the youngsters have showed nerves in games that weren’t going their way, and Rooney can talk to them about that, because he has had that experience of losing his nerve in a big tournament. “You need a Rooney in the camp.” The BBC will provide extensive coverage of Euro 2016 across TV, radio and online from Friday June 10.