Wayne wants to be a world-beater alongside Pele and Maradona

WHEN asked to name his World Cup heroes, the men he most wanted to emulate, there was never any chance of Wayne Rooney playing safe and going for Paul Gascoigne or Gary Lineker.

Instead, without blinking, he spoke of Maradona and Pele.

That’s the level the Manchester United striker is aiming for and where he wants to see himself referenced in the history of football; not just as a striker who enjoyed a decent World Cup but as a player who dominated a major tournament and won his country a trophy. Such lofty ambitions are laudable and make a mockery of suggestions that Rooney is unable to cope with the weight of expectation placed on him by both club and country; this is a player for whom the most intense pressure comes from within.