Football Biography Contest || Wayne Rooney: Wonder boy to Old Trafford legend...

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When 18-year-old Wayne Rooney joined Manchester United in 2004 with a dream of a successful career, he may not have imagined that he would one day leave Old Trafford as the top scorer in the history of this prestigious club in England. Born in Liverpool on 24 October 1985, Wayne Mark Rooney began his career in professional football at the age of 16. He played for Everton in the English Premier League against Tottenham Hotspurs that day. Despite not scoring a goal in the 2–2 draw in the 2002–03 season, the team's first goal came from his pass. He didn't have to wait long for his first goal for Everton. A month and a half after his debut, Rooney opened his scoring in professional football with a pair of goals in an English League Cup match. Shortly afterward, he became the youngest goalscorer in the history of the English Premier League, surpassing Michael Wayne with a powerful shot after controlling the ball well outside the box in the match against Arsenal. His triumphant goal against league champions Arsenal was enough to become the centerpiece of English media, with Rooney's name emblazoned on the new wonder boy of English football. He was also called up to the England national team after being a regular in Everton's first XI. The 18-year-old made his debut as the youngest footballer in the history of the England national team in a friendly match against Australia in February 2003. Not only that, he also set the record for the youngest goalscorer in the history of the tournament by scoring against Switzerland in the second match of the 2004 European Championship. Despite England's tiebreaker defeat to Portugal in the quarter-finals, Rooney also impressed everyone on the international stage with four goals in four matches. Not only did England's top clubs lack interest in the talented striker, but Everton was also adamant about keeping him at the club. He finally joined Manchester United in August 2004 for 25.6 million, despite a new contract, extended by Everton. Even the board members of Manchester United were surprised to see a veteran and accounting manager like Sir Alex Ferguson agreed to buy the 18-year-old striker for such a hefty sum.

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He made his Manchester United jersey debut against Fenerbahce in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League at Old Trafford. Rooney was quick to win the hearts of the Red Devils fans on the field, scoring a hat-trick in the first match to help the team win 6-2. However, he did not win a title in his first season at Old Trafford, losing in a tiebreaker to Arsenal in the FA Cup final, and Manchester United had to settle for third place in the league. While not helping the team win any titles, he finished the season as the club's top scorer (17 goals in 43 games) and also won the PFA Young Player of the Year award. Rooney won the English League Cup for United in the 2005-06 season, scoring a pair of goals in the final, and was named Man of the Match. However, the Red Devils did not win the Premier League title and had to end the season as runners-up. Rooney, who has scored 16 goals in 26 league games, has been named Manchester United's Player of the Season for the second time in a row, winning the PFA Player of the Year award. But he was ruled out of the 2006 World Cup due to injury at the end of the season. He was surrounded by the hopes of the whole of England, so he rushed to the World Cup with medical treatment in a hurry without waiting for the scheduled time to fully recover. As a result, he failed to return to his normal form on the field. Cristiano Ronaldo, another Portuguese teammate from Rooney, applied for a red card in an aggressive manner after fouling opponent defender Ricardo Carvalho in the 62nd minute of the quarter-final against Portugal. When Rooney couldn't control his temper and pushed Ronaldo, the referee forced him to show a red card. Most people think that Ronaldo did it to provoke Rooney, as he was aware of the English striker's bad temper as they played together at Manchester United. England had to say goodbye after losing the match in a tiebreaker like in Euro 2004. However, at the end of the World Cup, Rooney settled his problem with Ronaldo and focused on the game. Although the Red Devils' first two season league titles were elusive, he was a key member of the attacking side of Manchester United, who won the English Premier League three times in a row from 2008-08 to 2008-09. In addition to playing as a center forward at the time, Rooney could easily adapt to other attacking positions in the team's needs. The creative center forward showed equal skill in both scoring goals or scoring goals for his teammates. For the first time in the 2006-07 season, Rooney tasted a domestic league title, scoring 12 goals in 27 appearances for United and 11 assists, the highest in the English Premier League. The following season, Manchester United dominated Europe as well as England, with a second Premier League medal and a UEFA Champions League medal in their cabinet. Even at the end of 2007, the team played a leading role in winning the FIFA Club World Cup, as well as winning the title of the best player of the tournament.

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In 2009, Wayne Rooney had to appear as a key player in the team without Christiano Ronaldo. Despite losing the league title to Chelsea in the 2009-10 season, he was named the Premier League's best player with 26 goals in 32 appearances throughout the season. However, he suffered a knee injury at the end of the season. Seeing his great form in the 2009-10 season, everyone was ready for a glimpse of him on the field for England in the 2010 World Cup. But Rooney failed miserably to live up to that expectation, playing so badly in the World Cup that he was criticized by the English media and fans throughout the tournament. Rooney was also on the field at the start of the new season after a disappointing World Cup experience. As a result, Sir Alex Ferguson kept him on the bench for two matches at the time. Rooney, unaccustomed to being dropped from Manchester United's starting XI, said in a statement that he wanted to leave the club. Within days of that statement, however, he reversed his decision and signed a new five-year deal with Manchester United, which left Red Devils fans breathless. After renewing his contract, he left his problems behind and started working on new ventures, and since the beginning of 2011, he has been seen playing in the old continuity. In February, he scored an incredible goal at Old Trafford against city rivals Manchester City through an overhead bicycle kick. His winning goal against City was hailed by Sir Alex Ferguson himself as the best goal he has ever seen at Old Trafford. He did not stop at winning the league title for the Club, but also helped Manchester United reach the UEFA Champions League final. Although he played well in the 2011-12 season (28 goals in 34 matches), United lost the league title to Manchester City in the last match of the season. In the 2012-13 season, he reached the 200-goal milestone for the club. Despite tasting his fifth league title that season, Rooney wants to leave the club again at the end of the season. However, in the summer of 2013, Manchester United's new manager David Moyes assured everyone that Rooney was not leaving the club. But after the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson, the club's performance under the new manager in the 2013-14 season was disappointing and the Red Devils had to finish the season in seventh place in the league. Even at such a bad time for United, Rooney's stats were good enough, scoring 18 goals in 29 league games and eight assists in nine, making him one of the top assisters in the UEFA Champions League. Rooney captained England after being knocked out of the first round of the 2014 World Cup.

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At the same time, the new manager of Manchester United, Louis van Gaal, also chose him as the captain of the club. Considering his age and ability to understand the game on the field, good passing range and good understanding with teammates, Louis van Gaal often played Rooney in midfield for the next two seasons. In 2016, under his leadership, Manchester United won the FA Cup. He dominated the midfield in the FA Cup final against Crystal Palace and was named Man of the Match for his 2-1 win in 120 minutes. He set a very important record for the club in his last season at Old Trafford. He became the club's all-time leading goalscorer with his 250th goal in a Manchester United jersey from a free-kick against Stoke City on 21 January 2016 surpassing Sir Bobby Charlton. His Red Devil life came to an end on 24 May 2017 with a UEFA Europa League win. He has scored 253 goals in 559 appearances for Manchester United. Sir Bobby Charlton himself handed over this special award to Rooney after scoring 250 goals for Manchester United. He has played for Manchester United for 13 years and has won all kinds of titles. English Premier League, FA Cup, English League Cup. UEFA Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup, Europa League - no titles were left out. He scored at least 10 goals for United each season, with the exception of the 2016-17 season. This statistic is enough to prove his long continuity for the club. On his departure, another Manchester United legend, Gary Neville, said Rooney was the best striker he has played with at his 19-year career at Old Trafford. Towards the end of his career, he left Manchester United and returned to his first club, Everton. Rooney's place in the England national team was called into question after his side's defeat in the quarter-finals against Iceland at Euro 2016, although he expressed a desire to play in the 2018 World Cup. But he announced his retirement from international football a few months after being dropped from the national team in early 2017. However, after seeing Rooney's good performance for Everton, English coach Gareth Southgate considered calling him back to the national team, but it was not possible as he officially announced his retirement. However, he retired in November 2018 to play a friendly match for England against the United States at Wembley Stadium. Rooney was brought back to the England squad for the match with an official farewell reception. Despite failing to make a significant impact on the international stage for the national team, Rooney, who has scored 53 goals in 120 matches, ended his international career as England's top scorer. After playing one season for Everton, he joined United club DC United to play Major League Soccer. Rooney has scored 208 goals and 103 assists in 491 matches in the English Premier League for 16 years. Shortly after joining DC United, he made an unforgettable assist in a match against Orlando City. The score was 2-2 in the last minute of the game, DC United was so desperate for a goal after getting a corner at that time that their goalkeeper also came in the opponent's D-box. But after the corner, Orlando City went on a counter-attack, with DC United scoring inevitably as the goal was left open. Although everyone on the team gave up hope, Rooney did not give up. After running to their own half and snatching the ball from the opponent's player to save the team from a sure goal, the opponent's D-box along with the teammate Luciano Acosta gave a measured long pass to the goal. Acosta ensured the team's victory by scoring Rooney's great cross from about 50 yards out. Even if he doesn't score a goal himself, this goal scored by Rooney will be a witness of his hardworking and fighting mentality for the rest of his life. He joined Derby County, England's second division team, in January 2020 after playing 23 seasons for DC United and scoring 23 goals and 15 assists in 47 matches in Major League Soccer. After playing for Derby County for a year, he was appointed manager of the club in January 2021 and announced his retirement from professional football. Only time will tell whether he will see success in the role of coach now after a colorful football career. I wish Wayne Rooney, the top scorer in the history of Manchester United and England well in this new chapter.