Scholes: Rooney may be past his best; Woodward has 'an awful lot to prove'

By Peter O’ Dwyer

Paul Scholes has suggested that his former Manchester United teammate Wayne Rooney may be beyond his peak, at the age of 28.

Scholes noted that the amount of football the England star has played since bursting onto the scene with Everton as a 16-year-old may mean that Rooney reached his peak a few years ago and might retire in his early thirties.

Rooney, deployed a lone striker for much of the season, netted 27 Premier League goals for United during the 2011/12 season – a year Scholes suggests Rooney may have been at his best.

“Wayne was in the Everton team at 16 years of age, in 2003. Since then he’s played at Euro 2004, two World Cups, Premier League, and Champions League every year at United. There’s a chance he’s worn out,” Scholes wrote in his first blog for online betting site PaddyPower.com

“Wayne’s peak may have been a lot younger than what we’d expect of footballers traditionally. Age 28 or 29 has been the normal ‘peak’. With Wayne, it could have been when he scored 27 league goals in 2011/2012 when he was 26,” he added.

The former Manchester United midfielder had plenty praise for Rooney too however, insisting that he has the quality to fill the midfield berth Scholes himself used to occupy – with a word of caution over his effectiveness when paired with another striker.

He also praised the striker’s willingness to play and train – unlike other modern players – and his desire to win and sacrifice himself for the team.

“His best attributes are his energy, desire, a will to win which is unbelievable – but, above all, his goals. Wayne wants all the responsibility to score,” he wrote.

“He’ll try to play left back, right back. Sometimes he does that too much instead of saving himself and his energy for what his teams need – the ball in the net. He needs to use his energy more effectively now as he’s a player who likes to be up front on his own and I don’t think he’s great with partnerships.”

In order to get the best out of Rooney and allow him to put in his best performances, something Scholes thinks is crucial if he is to be seen as one of the world’s elite players, England manager Roy Hodgson should allow Rooney to concentrate solely on finding the back of the net from the centre-forward position and not worry about defensive duties.

Rooney, however, is unlikely to be afforded such a luxury with Daniel Sturridge’s fine performances for Liverpool this season making him a strong favourite to play that role, with Rooney deployed slightly deeper.

In his first foray into football writing, Scholes delivered typically forthright views on a number of other issues; much like his television debut with Sky Sports earlier this year.

Scholes again re-iterated his view that David Moyes should have been given more time as Manchester United manager; claimed the club’s executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has “an awful lot to prove.”

He added that United are a long way behind Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool and need five or six players to “get anywhere near the top of the Premier League again”.