Maturing Rooney back to his best for United

AS Wayne Rooney becomes a man, celebrating his 21st birthday, it is perhaps fitting that he will have the first crisis of his career already behind him.

The feeding frenzy over Rooney and his apparent loss of form has been taken to ferocious lengths because it coincides with England’s wobble in their Euro 2008 qualifying campaign. No wonder there is no escape from the spotlight for the 20-year-old.

Rooney is happiest on the football pitch, however, and despite extending his miserable run in front of goal to a mere two goals in his last seventeen games for club and country, the Liverpudlian showed once and for all against Paul Jewell’s team that Wayne Rooney is a huge force of good for United.