Rooney On Fire !!!

Since I wrote my article telling Wayne Rooney to hurry back from injury or he may not get back into the Manchester United starting eleven, he has scored four in four games in the Premiership and 4 goals in two games for England. So I apologise Wayne for ever doubting you.

Rooney himself says he's in the form of his life after his performance against West Brom. With eight goals in six games who is going to argue against that ? United thrashed WBA 4-0 with Rooney also collecting two assists as Portugal pair Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani added their names to the scoresheet, along with Dimitar Berbatov. With Celtic due in the Champions League on Tuesday, Rooney admitted he was at his peak.

"This is possibly the best form of my career, everything is going well for me at the moment. Hopefully that can continue and I can help this team win even more trophies."

Rooney's efforts helped eclipse a disappointing opening period for the United, who dominated throughout but drew a blank as referee Mark Halsey ruled out what appeared to be a perfectly good goal from the England man for a foul on Gianni Zuiverloon.

"From the position the referee was in, I can understand why he didn't give it," said manager Sir Alex Ferguson. "Wayne did have a hand on the lad's shoulder but he did not pull him. You can see it from the TV replays but obviously the referee does not have that advantage."

A capacity crowd did not need to look again to see the damage Rooney could cause. Following his World Cup qualifying exploits for England, Rooney carried on where he left off, collecting Berbatov's short pass before slotting in a fine solo effort that ended the brave resistance of West Brom keeper Scott Carson.

"Wayne is only 22, we expect him to improve, as we did with Ronaldo. But he is a member of the team, just like everyone else" said Ferguson.

Ferguson does feel his side are now starting to find their feet after a difficult start to the campaign. For the first time, they have joined Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal in the top four, from where Ferguson is convinced the champions will emerge.

Fergie added: "I don't think we have given them a warning tonight, I think we provided that before the season began. We won the league last year - and the European Cup. Those three teams know the quality in our side, just as we know the quality in theirs. It is a fantastic league and any one of the four could win it." .....Back To Home Page

Robinson's Weak Attempt To Secure Zuiverloon's Allegiance

West Brom defender Paul Robinson has warned teammate Gianni Zuiverloon over interest from Manchester United. He almost makes it sound like his life will end if he joins United.

Fergie is said to be keen on the 21-year-old, but Mowbray told Midlands newspaper the Express & Star: "I hope he realises he is a young player and we have given him an opportunity to come and play in the Premier League. We have one or two players that other clubs ask me about, but selling is not the plan. The plan is to try to build a team, not to bring them in and sell them off quickly. What is the point of bringing a player in and then selling him in a year?"

Captain Robinson warned Zuiverloon that a move to a bigger club might not be beneficial at this stage of his career.

"He is 22 now and he has got a great future ahead of him – there is no doubt in my mind. I’m just hoping that the big clubs stay away and don’t take him away from us. You see a lot of young lads now go away from clubs like ours and they’re not playing. I don’t want to see the young lads do that any more until they know they can go to a big club and play week in, week out."

He actually neglected to mention that they will get paid probably twice what they will at West Brom and then they will have plenty of opportunities to go out on loan and ply their trade at a smaller club to build up their playing abilities and confidence. I think that's a much better deal then putting all your eggs in West Broms basket !! No offence to WBA by the way....Back To Home Page

Gianni Zuiverloon Anybody ?

Speaking on the West Brom website Chris Brunt has been heaping praise on their new Dutch arrival Gianni Zuiverloon. The Dutchman is interesting Manchester United and Brunt told his club's website:

"Gianni's a top player. The gaffer has done really well to get him to West Brom. He looks more than capable in the Premier League and hopefully he can keep playing like that because he's been a big player for us so far. If he can keep playing like that all season, we've got a top player on our hands. It's a credit to him that he's kept some of the best left-wingers in the Premier League quiet. He works hard in training and he's shown in every game he's played since he's been here what a good player he is. If he keeps playing like that, £3.2million will look like a bargain for him."

ANOTHER Manchester United target I know. At this rate we will have a squad of 236 players and a wage bill twice the size of the Icelandic national debt. Well, probably not that big given recent events but you get my drift....Back To Home Page