Only Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo better than Rooney in last decade, says former Liverpool striker Stan Collymore

What’s the story?

Former England international, Stan Collymore, has said that only Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have had better careers than Wayne Rooney over the last decade. The England captain became Manchester United’s all-time highest goal-scorer on Saturday after beating Sir Bobby Charlton’s record, whose all-time England goalscoring record he broke last year, as well.

“If you take out the big two, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, he has had as good a career as anybody in the world over the last decade,” the former England player wrote in the Daily Mirror.

“You don’t break Sir Bobby Charlton’s England or Manchester United’s goal records without being something very special. So huge congratulations to Wayne Rooney for achieving both, for a fantastic career that has seen him win virtually every trophy,” he further wrote.

In case you didn’t know...

Rooney has now scored 250 goals for Manchester United, surpassing Sir Bobby Charlton’s record of 249. He has managed the feat in far fewer games than Charlton – 546 games as compared to Sir Bobby Charlton’s 758. The former Everton youngster is also England’s highest goal-scorer with 53 international goals as compared to Charlton’s 49.

Since his transfer to Manchester United in 2004 from Everton, Rooney has won 5 Premier League titles as well as the 2007-08 Champions League trophy.

The heart of the matter

Stan Collymore has praised Rooney for his all-round game as well as his goalscoring ability, saying that he has, in fact, had a great career. Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi’s feats over the last decade eclipse the England international’s, but apart from the two icons, Rooney has won a lot of trophies and individual accolades as well.

However, Collymore did also state that he was disappointed that Rooney could not help England win any trophies, “It is a little disappointing that we couldn’t see him at his best for England in terms of winning trophies or getting to finals and semi-finals,“ he wrote.

What’s next?

Rooney’s record could stand for a very long time – Sir Bobby Charlton’s record of 249 goals stood for 44 years. Rooney has broken that record now and the tally he does end up finishing his career at United with remains to be seen. Rooney is 31-years-old now and could play for at least two seasons.

Sportskeeda’s take

Rooney has got himself into the history books, which is a ground-breaking feat, but he also needs to help Manchester United get to the top of English and European football again. The Old Trafford club have been underperforming ever since long time boss, Sir Alex Ferguson retired.

With Jose Mourinho now offering some stability and quality in the dugout, Rooney should help the Portuguese manager build a solid foundation at United and perhaps even consider playing till he is 34-35. The Englishman’s experience, knowledge and quality would certainly help the younger players and future signings at Manchester United.