Wayne Rooney‘s tuneup opportunity with the Man United Under-21 squad has come to an end after the Red Devils legend was subbed off against Middlesbrough at the 61’ mark in favor of Axel Tuanzebe.
As most people have come to expect from Rooney, he was hardly shy about taking shots from any spot or angle, however he was off the mark on all of them, hitting balls over the crossbar (and sometimes closer to the fans in the bleachers than the net) while failing to record a goal or assist during the match.
Nonetheless, he demonstrated no lingering soreness and appeared back on track to rejoin the team as soon as Louis van Gaal will have him back.
Rooney has been out of action for club and country since sustaining a knee injury in mid-February, but he remains tied with Anthony Martial for Man United’s leading scorer on the season with 10 goals in all club competitions.
The absence of Rooney has given rise to several forwards at Old Trafford and on the England roster.
Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial filled in very well at forward for a time, keeping the Red Devils in the hunt for the FA Cup and a Champions League berth.
On Roy Hodgson’s side, Jamie Vardy and Harry Kane both proved to be exceptional forwards in friendlies against Germany and the Netherlands.
Whether Rooney did enough or demonstrated enough fitness to rejoin Man United when they take on West Ham in the FA Cup quarter-finals remains to be seen.
Rooney has seven Premier League goals and has not finished a season below double-digits since joining Man United in 2004.
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