The Rovers Return: Players who Return Home
Posted by Rob Shepherd on Friday, March 24, 2017
Wayne Rooney could be set for a return to his boyhood club according to a report in The Independent. The former Everton striker could be set for an emotional return to Goodison Park where he made his debut as a 16-year-old.
Rooney burst onto the scene against Arsenal and his stunning strike gave Everton a 2-1 victory and ended Arsenal’s 30 game unbeaten run. Earlier, he had become Everton’s youngest ever scorer when he netted against Wrexham in the Worthington Cup.
In 48 appearances, Rooney scored 17 times and his blistering pace and Charlton-esque shot caught the attention of Manchester United who paid £30 million for Wayne’s services. At the time the fee paid for Rooney was a world-record fee for a teenager (since eclipsed by Anthony Martial, £36 million).
Speculation regarding Rooney’s future has been rife over the last couple of months with rumours of the 31-year-old considering a move to China. However, The Independent claim that Rooney’s first choice would be a return to the club that he left as an 18-year-old.
Rooney has been on the fringes at United this year, he has only taken to the pitch for 996 minutes in the Premier League this year. His goal return of two is far below the return expected from a player of his calibre. In comparison, Zlatan Ibrahimovic has played 2250 minutes with 15 goals and 4 assists.
Forgive and Forget?
Everton fans were certainly not happy when Rooney left Everton to join United. Even before his departure, an ill-advised interview set up by his agent, Paul Stretford made Rooney a target of hatred for some fans from both Everton and Liverpool.
The Sun newspaper was banned from all of Liverpool FC’s premises and they have told Sun reporters that they will not be able to attend any of Liverpool’s games. The Sun has been the subject of a boycott on Merseyside since 1989 when the newspaper falsely reported that Liverpool fans stole from and urinated on dead bodies following the Hillsborough disaster in 1989 that saw the death of 96 fans.
Rooney was caught in the cross-fire when his agent arranged an interview with The Sun that was serialised in the paper. This caused outrage with some supporters who saw this as a cynical ploy by the newspaper to counter the boycott of the paper.
Rooney who was famously pictured revealing a t-shirt that proclaimed “once a blue, always a blue” had his house covered in graffiti due to the incident and was the subject of many attacks on social media.
Once a Blue, always a Blue
Rooney recalled the time when he left Everton to join United, he was watching Sky Sports News and Everton fans were texting messages calling him a “Judas” and stating he “was never a true blue”. A funny part of the story is that Rooney himself text in saying “I left because the club was doing my head in – Wayne Rooney.” The presenter then asked if people could stop texting in pretending to be Wayne Rooney.
Sentiment however does appear to be softening towards Rooney. In August 2015, Rooney once again played for Everton when he came on in the Duncan Ferguson testimonial. Rooney put back on the blue number 18 shirt that he wore for Everton as he came on for the last 15 minutes of the game. Rooney received a warm reception from the crowd.
His own testimonial, which was held against Everton in January this year, raised over £1.2 million to help disadvantaged children. The Wayne Rooney foundation hopes to raise £5 million and will benefit the NSPCC, Claire House Children‘s Hospice, Alder Hey Children‘s Charity and the Manchester United Foundation.
The Rovers Return: A Legend Comes Home
This story got us thinking! What other players have sought pastures new and then returned home? Did they manage to overcome the sense of betrayal that fans often feel when a superstar leaves? More importantly, how did they do?
Robbie Fowler: Robbie is a Liverpool legend! In his first spell at the club he scored 120 goals in just 236 games, the guy is a goal machine. Robbie himself admits he struggled personally with the fame and attention he received while playing for Liverpool.
“I don’t think I was prepared for all the fame and attention when I broke through at Liverpool. I came through just as the Premier League started so I was a young lad and there was more publicity surrounding us than ever before. “
Robbie left Liverpool to join Leeds (30 apps, 14 goals), he then joined Manchester City (80 apps, 20 goals) before re-joining Liverpool in 2006.
On his return to Liverpool, the fans were ecstatic! Banners were displayed, ‘God – number eleven, welcome back to heaven. He would make 30 more appearances for Liverpool, scoring 8 goals.
Thierry Henry: Another goal scoring legend! Thierry signed for Arsenal from Juventus in 1999. His goal scoring record at Juventus of 3 goals in 16 appearances gave no indication of the avalanche of goals that was about to rain down on Arsenal’s opponents. Between 1999-2007, Henry scored an impossible 174 goals in just 254 appearances. He was simply awesome.
Thierry moved to Barcelona FC in 2007, in three years with the Catalan giants, he scored a very respectable 35 goals in 80 games. He would then spend 4 years at New York Red Bulls for whom he would net 51 times in 122 games.
In 2012, he returned to Arsenal on a two-month loan in the MLS off-season. Arsenal had lost a few players to the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations and Henry would provide cover. In 4 games, he scored 1 goal which fittingly won the match 1-0.
Paul Scholes: Whilst not having the goal scoring prowess of Fowler or Henry, Paul Scholes was just as influential to Manchester United as either of those footballing greats. In his first stint, Paul made 466 appearances and would score 102 goals. Scholes is the most decorated English footballer in history with 11 Premier League titles, 3 FA Cups and 2 Champions League victories among his many honours.
Scholes was a one club man and never even hired an agent. So why is he on the list? Scholes announced his retirement in 2011 and joined the background staff at Old Trafford.
In January of 2012, Scholes declared he was coming out of retirement to help the injury crisis that had hit Manchester United. He would then go on to sign another one-year extension to stay at the club. Between 2012 and 2013, Scholes played a further 33 games and scored 5 goals. He retired a 2nd time after his final league appearance on 19th May 2013.