The Case for Rooney

You use Robinho to prove your theory that a big name can lift the whole club. While I agree, Robinho was classed as a world-class player at that stage, a Brazilian international and was only 25!

Signing Rooney is a huge mistake in my opinon. If you look at our squad what exactly would Rooney add? When's the last time you seen Rooney put in a defense splitting pass? Zero pace and drops deeper and deeper as the years get on.

For me, a huge No; much better players out there for the money that we will be paying, simple as that.

How many players better than Rooney now, have we got much chance of signing, Gerry?

Does signing Rooney mean we won't buy other players? No, we can still buy other players too.

Having Rooney in the squad does not mean players will have their path to first team progression blocked. It means they have to up their game to complete to get a game. Who benefits in this situation? We do.

Even at 31, Rooney is a quality player, with a football brain and winning mentality.

I'm all for EFC signing quality players, regardless who they play for or have played for. Rooney remains a quality player, not as good as he was, but still an upgrade on Niasse, Kone, Mirallas and Valencia.

We sometimes moan that our bench is short of quality options. Well, let's sign quality players and our options will improve. Rooney doesn't have to be the only quality signing we make – just one of a number of quality signings.

I get the article is the case for. But the points made would have more impact had you set out more explicitly the case against too.

I think we will see Rooney in a blue shirt come August.

He's light-years ahead of any other player in our squad, including Lukaku, and would be a massive positive influence on the younger players; he's a blue and a proven winner.

Coming back would reinvigorate him and our fan base, he'd hopefully get his nasty winning streak back and would raise our global profile. Absolute no-brainer for me.

The player Everton did miss out on, was Gabbiadini, who now can't stop scoring goals for Southampton. Rooney is better off going to China and having a last big pay cheque.

I think he probably will be back and hope you are right. I am very much a 'glass half-full' optimist (so spend a lot of time disappointed!) but I fear Rooney has too many miles on the clock given his work rate as a first-team Premier League player for the last nigh on 15 years.

His seemingly evident recent decline in physical attributes (speed and stamina) are too great for him to have the impact wished for, I fear. Time and tide wait for no man.

Alex Ferguson dropped him for a while due to his lifestyle which was said not to be conducive to a top professional footballer and that was 4 or 5 years ago.

He was pissed off his head at Bellew's fight Saturday night and by all accounts after England's last game. He is also said to smoke like a trooper so it's a definite no from me.

I would sooner pay big agents fees to some of the parasites to find us the new 18-year-old "Rooney".

However, you touch lightly on a critical issue, that of the pay cut required. It's not just about Rooney's willingness... it's about the necessity that he fits into our current wage scale and doesn't create dissension with a disproportionate paycheck. He'd better be VERY willing.

And no, the shirt sales won't come close to covering his tab.

THIS?! AGAIN?!

Cummon editors. 3 Rooney articles a week is overkill.

You can do better than this.

The game has changed, and Everton are slow enough as it is. IF he's not good enough for a team one place above us, why is he good enough for us when even older???

Great in his day but, like Baines and Barry, his day has gone. We have to look at the future if we as a club want to win anything else again.

Check out the stats and think about the future. Gabbiadini would be a better buy than Rooney at this stage of his career. Man Utd tend to dump their surplus players on... US!! Why do we settle for it? If we are serious about cracking that top tier ceiling then we should be competing with the top six for players not accepting their cast off's.

If Walsh is so good as a talent scout then Rooney should not be our focus. Let this guy earn his corn and find us a Mahrez. Anyone can say Rooney is worth a punt. A talent scout should be looking for hidden gems to improve the team.

Find us a towering, quality centre back. Find us a midfield maestro like Mahrez. Find us a second striker who can guarantee us double figure scoring each season.

Above all, keep Lukaku at Everton!!!

And that is the attitude that will keep us little old Everton where we are.

I think it's a great move and agree with Teddy, he could help us not only keep Lukaku but also to attract other high profile players.

In terms of his fitness issues, he's hardly played this season so that's a bonus. If we qualify for Europe he brings massive experience, remember our lot have won nothing.

Point is we can speculate until the cows come home but you just never know how well things will work out. For me, it's no-brainer on so many levels. Get him in.

However, the money has got to be right. Man Utd would have to be willing to give him away pretty much on a free, as his wages will be way over £100,000 a week. I suspect Man Utd would want around £10 million for him, in which case the sums don't add up.

It would be good if it comes off, but I suspect it won't for money reasons.

"They ripped our 30-plus players to shreds."

They did a pretty good job on our younger ones too.

And also I would note that Schneiderlin wasn't even "good enough" to make the bench for that same "team one place above us"... and despite his mistakes yesterday he still looks like a pretty spectacular addition.

Players have gone and trimmed the wage bill recently. Three to five years left at the top level, winning mentally, and winning a trophy to cap his career off at his club.

It could send a signal out to the rest of the Premier League that we mean business. It could keep lukaku for another season. Who knows what might happen. All I know is we have signed a lot worse!

People argue that if Man Utd don't want him anymore then why should we? They forget that Man Utd (possibly) don't want him at £300k a week anymore... and of course neither would we. But would they extend his contract at £100k a week? I think they'd wank the ghost of Paul Stetford off for all eternity (or at least 2 years) to have that option. That might be the position we find ourselves in and we would be the ONLY club given those sort of terms.

The likes of Man Utd and Mourinho can attract a HUGE name. Their £300k a week is better spent right now. Let's not pretend we're shopping in the same store.

Man City weren't and found a way, though fantastic PR and shred expensive signings, to compete with their illustrious neighbours. We're a long way away from that and the only way to move to the next level and attract the top European talent is with a statement of intent. They don't get much bigger.

Too many hurt egos that need to see the bigger picture, in my opinion.

What if he was a just a slightly faded international superstar, in his current managers' doghouse, in need of a change of scenery?

I personally think he would be an excellent acquisition, but unfortunately, he does have an Everton history. To more than a few Evertonians, that history makes the thought of him wearing a royal blue shirt, untenable.

Koeman and Walsh, however, are NOT Evertonians; and Kenwright never wanted to sell him in the first place. Their purpose is to improve the squad anyway possible. So who knows?

Would he help or hinder? There may be too many skeletons. He may be too expensive. He may be just too old. But even with all that, I think his experience, his skills (diminished though they may be), will prove to be most helpful. If he does come back, he will be coming home, and that may just be the most important thing in all this.

Rooney will also give us something we currently lack, a true leader; not necessarily a captain, but a leader on the field. Something that we just don't have now.

My second response would be Rooney is past it and Utd have finally got rid. To the media the spin would just be sentimentality and the passing of a legend, not Everton are suddenly a superpower again. Eric Cantona could buy a new pair of boots, turn up at the Man Utd training ground and the media would love it, Man Utd are back would be the cry. The same with Ian Rush doing the same at Liverpool or Dennis Bergkamp at Arsenal.

Our profile, apart from a fleeting novelty value, will not be raised significantly. You will get a paragraph in a match report discussing Rooney, or the odd column maybe, but there will be very little interest by Christmas.

This will just be about what improvement this player will bring to the squad, nothing more.

Well, for a start, we probably wouldn't be having this conversation and sure as shit wouldn't have had to suffer similar repetition, six times a year for the past eight years (or however long it's been since the rancour over his move reduced sufficiently to allow some Evertonian's to start emoting like Bill Kenwright half-way through a back-to-back movie marathon of 'Brokeback Mountain' and 'Herbie Goes Bananas').

Most of the opposition to any move for the United man has consisted of people casting doubt on his form of the last few years, his fitness, time at the top left in the tank and the financial dent his massive wages would likely make in the club budget.

Not many have suggested it should be an immediate 'NO' on principle alone, even if they spent the first few years following his exit furiously shaking their head and saying stuff like "Ohhhh Wayne, how sharper than a serpent's tooth is your betrayal", or frothing at the mouth and swearing "I won't ever forget this (or let you forget it), you leave-taking at the first opportunity, future Eddie Yates looking, little twat."

To suggest his past history with the club could be clouding the judgement of those not jumping with joy over the prospect of a return and should really be put aside in order for them to fairly assess the situation, strikes me as a little a bit rich when you immediately follow up by rolling out the line: "If he does come back, he will be coming home, and that may just be the most import thing in all this."

Yeah, but it shouldn't be. I thought we (or at least you) already got that straight?

He would also raise our profile somewhat (thereby making us more attractive to new players), although Koeman as manager and Lukaku emerging as one of the world's top strikers might obviate that argument.

But that's it. I don't see much else signing him could bring.

Denis Law was a great player - and a winner but when he left United to go back to City it was the beginning of the end of his career. He lasted one season after he went back to City.

If Rooney comes back to Everton, it will be the beginning of the end for him.

The worst part about it for us though, would be that it would deprive us for a full season with the player that we need in the new found "Rooney" position whatever that is.

Spend the money on a good tall centre half instead.

Koulibaly.

Even if he and his agent agreed to a significant reduction in wages on the back of a golden handshake from Man Utd, the money would still be huge relative to our total wage bill; money which would be better spent on a younger, fitter player.

It's a romantic, nostalgic move so perfect for cementing Uncle Bill's legacy or some such. I really do think it'd be a step backwards football wise, though.

Football is a squad game and we are too reliant on certain players to play well every game. Having Rooney in the squad will increase the competition in attacking midfield position and up front.

So he'll get paid loads? It's not my money? All I care is it is, will it improve us. Unless he puts on about 10 stone between now and the summer, I think the pro's outweigh the cons.

It's not so much about who Rooney'd replace, but about who he'd help getting rested for later games. That's what the big clubs with their big squads are all about, after all!

Why do we all keep thinking a squad equals the starting XI + subs? Are we all mired in the 90s and Before-Koeman-Had-Dreams-of-Grandeur-for-Us?

Rooney would be a great statement for EFC if he could adjust his wages to his age, and as a life-long EFC supporter (despite hiding behind his kids for now...), I'd think he'd be extra fired-up about giving his last active years to EFC!

Should a team looking to make great strides over the next few years be thinking about bringing a player in based on what financial gains could be made through his name? Not in my opinion; our money could be much better spent elsewhere.

I keep reading about the leadership qualities he would bring to the team but, if you aren't getting a game, you can't really lead from the front can you? It's a great big No Thanks from me!!

The answer is definitely Yes... So why?

We are not there yet that just about anyone will want to come to us. So getting Rooney in might be a good idea for the short term! Maybe even help us get others in...

The lift he will have if he came back will spur him on, remember, he KNOWS he is going at the end of the season with Man Utd, he is going through the motions.. nothing he does will make a difference. He needs a challenge.

Can he do it for a year or two? I think he can, he would certainly add passion and experience. Yes, he has had his best days, but we could provide the environment for an Indian summer.. Bring him home.

When you take a player like Rooney who is/was a world class player I think you have to consider a few things. The first is of course would he help the team. Well he is perhaps past his prime as a superstar main striker but I doubt that he would be signed for that roll anyway.

Lukaku is that and his biggest problem is that he is often isolated up front and so is a streaky player Lusaka will score if you give him the ball in the right way. Rooney playing in the pocket behind a beside Lukaku would be perfect. If he can score 12 goals a season then Lukaku could be expected to score more also because he would be allowed that much freedom.

The thought of Lukaku and Rooney up front is a defenders nightmare. IMO we would still need one more young striker to cover for either so it would in know way block the progress of our younger players.

His massive salary actually works in our favor because to pick it up we would probably get Rooney on a free which of course free up the money for other areas of the team. How about Keane from Burnley and Harry Maguire from Hull in the center of the defense for the next 10 years?

Marketing Rooney just puts us on another level in that department – he is known world wide.

Rooney would also help Barkley in the top centerfield he is one of the smartest players in the league if not the world. I just think he would be the perfect signing for us now; if we were further down the road in our progress I would be against it but I think we would benefit on lots of levels by his presence. Sign him – it's a no-brainer.

It would be a romantic move, and the media seem to have decided that it is going to happen. However, I would rather have Mata.

You just can't ignore him and hope he doesn't score because he will kill you. And the beauty is he is a world class player who would only cost his salary, he knows the league, and we have at least two years to either find or develop his replacement.

What is a more perfect signing than this one?

I doubt he will be earning anything close to the £12-13 million pounds he does annually (less tax) when he starts looking at career options... not exactly a David Beckham now is he?

TV pundit? Nah, who gives a shttttt. What's best for Everton?

Maybe if he does sign I will warm to the idea but the guy sold his soul to the Red Devil. Lookman, Davies, Holgate, Barkley, and Lukaku are the future, maybe one or two others. Over to Koeman and Co.

I think Rooney would improve our first team by taking up this spot. It will help take the pressure and spotlight off Lukaku and Barkley. If wages aren't too insane, I think this is worthwhile for a couple of seasons and by then Lookman or one of the other young guns maybe ready.

To say Rooney is past it on the basis of half a season is crazy. I remember when Nigel Martyn couldn't get a game for Leeds, but what a great signing he was.

Sign Rooney and you'll be getting someone with something to prove. There is nobody in our team that comes close to Rooney at his best, his best might be behind him but we'll never know if we don't give it a chance.

Commercially it makes sense, people mentioning Gascoigne and Ginola are way off the mark. However good they were, they were well past it and neither came close to the success and stature of Rooney.

He may cost a lot, but he'll bring in a lot too. Whoever said if we sign Rooney, we can't afford to sign anyone else must think we are still owned by Peter Johnson and managed by Walter Smith.

Come on, this would be great! He'll be wanting to win the doubters round – if he had that fire in his belly that is lacking with the easy life he has at Man Utd – it could be brilliant.

He hasn't played enough for me in the last couple of years and he looks laboured when he does play. He has been a great player for Man Utd but I don't think he is good enough for a team with ambitions to get in the top four and win trophies anymore.

Maybe we should also look to take the out-of-favour Luke Shaw from Man Utd as a longer term replacement for Leighton Baines. After all, before his serious injury he did jump ahead of Baines in the England team set-up.

A bit like when Owen went to Real Madrid, he took a pay cut... I think.

He will improve the squad and would be one of a few new signings so what's not to like?

FOR:

It's easy to jump on the bandwagon that it's a dumb sentimental move. I was there at first too and thought Rooney was way past being a productive player. However, with an open mind, I watched the 2 or 3 games he played for Man Utd in the last months and my verdict is – he is still a level higher than our current attacking players.

I can't believe people here are saying Barkley is as good as Rooney... haha. Rooney has that level of quality in passing alone that the current Everton squad rarely can muster. Those soft-lobbed balls into the box that someone like Lukaku can attack (and is always looking for from his support). Rooney also has shown that he can still score from free-kicks which we don't really do right now, and he's likely still more capable a goal-scorer than Mirallas, Barkley, Valencia, etc.

If Everton were smart and only gave him two years then told him to hit the road, they could absolutely benefit from having him join the squad and provide an immediate boost of quality in the final third.

Personally I don't buy the "It will help us keep Lukaku" line. I hope that Lukaku wants things to work out with Everton and in the past few years he has stuck around with less promising results than this season's. We shouldn't be buying Rooney for the purpose of "attracting players to sign here", in my opinion.

AGAINST:

If Everton tried to sign him for too much money or for more than 2 years, I think it's a huge mistake and setting the team back. As others have said, you can find younger players for way cheaper that are more promising but aren't quite at Rooney's level.

If Steve Walsh is everything that the English media thinks he is, it makes absolutely no sense to sign Rooney. It's like paying too much for a proven quality player, as if you don't trust Walsh and his recruitment team to find us players that can bring the same qualities, even though he just did it with Leicester City and we've already got Gana, Schneiderlin, and Lookman so far.

He is a leader. Let's not forget the eighties, had a great set of players but lacked belief, all that changed when we brought in Andy Gray and Peter Reid, suddenly we turned into world beaters.

We've got talent now, adding Rooney alongside the Likes of Barkley, Lukaku, Davies and the likes would be a master stroke, he might not be as quick but has still got a football brain.

Rooney for me would be a cross between Gray, Reid and the dogs of war, someone who can give belief to other players, but above all instill leadership and a kick up the arse for players' heads that drop.

No-brainier for me, deffo yes.

Wayne hasn't focussed upon being HIS best, consequently he has been accommodating for his managers. Wayne plays anywhere and everywhere. See that how you will, I see that as a failing.

A player who sticks to their guns shapes their team around them. Since he was a kid, Wayne hasn't understood that ONE failure isn't the end of the world. He is not the answer.

For me, I love Wayne Rooney, but I really do not want him back in Royal Blue again. Koeman & Koeman are just fine without him.

I really cannot see how Barkley and Davies (who I really value) benefit in a misshapen team that accomodates a player who impulsively plays out of position.

If I recall, Wayne was part of one of our youth outfits in a finall or semi. We were 5-0 down at some stage and Wayne took it upon himself to shoot almostl everytime he had possession.

Sadly, as well intended as his efforts have been, Rooney still persists with his rescue act. Because of this repeated habit he continues to throw teams out of balance. Always assuming that you alone are "the only answer", deprives, denies and possibly breaks the will to fight in those around you.

Love you Wayne.
No thanks.

One day I'm solidly in favour, next day I really don't.

My gut feeling is: "We won't be bringing back OUR WAYNE, we'll get THEIR has-been, for a few seasons".

Like getting back with a heartthrob ex via FaceBook or FreindsUnited, she might have something special back at school, but neither of you are the same by now.

I got back with an ex. Didn't work out nicely. Wish that we hadn't.

Onward Evertonians!

If, as is looking increasingly more likely, we qualify for Europe next season, we will need greater depth in the squad. Whilst I don't think we should be looking at Rooney for what he might add to our first team week-in & week-out, I do see benefit of his experience in the big games.

We don't have many "winners" in the dressing room, apart from the manager himself, so another with experience of winning at the highest level might just get the very best out of the talented youngsters we have in the squad already.