The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Rooney targets Euro glory
WA YNE ROONEY wants to end the pain that has been caused by Manchester United’s dreadful season by winning the Champions League for a second time.
United return to Champions League action tonight when they play the first leg of their last-16 clash against Olympiacos in Greece.
A s they are 11 points behind fourthplaced Liverpool, winning the Champions League could end up being the easiest route back into the competition next year.
With Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid all expected to feature in the quarter-finals, United are 25-1 shots to win the competition with some bookmakers.
One of the reasons Rooney signed a new 5½-year deal with United was because he thinks he can win more medals with the club and he thinks this could be United’s year.
“We’ve certainly got the quality in the team to go really far so hopefully we can do that,” the United striker said.
“We’ve been excellent in the Champions League this year and hopefully we can take that into the game tomorrow night.”
Rooney looked destined to leave United last summer but he has buried the hatchet with manager David Moyes and is sure the Scot is the right man to bring the glory days back to Old Trafford.
Rooney may have been at United for 10 years now, but his appetite for glory has not diminished.
“You always want to win it,” said Rooney, who was part of the United team that beat Chelsea in the final six years ago.
“One is never enough, especially at this club. We need to keep trying to get into finals.”
One of the reasons United have suffered is because Moyes has been deprived of his first-choice strike partnership of Rooney and Van Persie for much of the year.
Indeed, throughout their time at Old Trafford, United have only lost two of the 36 games they have started together.
Rooney admits it has been a frustrating period for him in that respect.
“Robin is a fantastic player,” he said. “He is one of the best goal scorers in world football.
“We’ve got a good record when we’ve played together but unfortunately we have had injuries at similar times but hopefully we can stay fit and help us win games.”
Olympiacos are unbeaten at the top of the Greek Super League this season but, with top scorer Javier Saviola out through injury, United are favourites to win the first leg in the Greek capital.