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When you hear Lionel Messi speak about Wayne Rooney, sometimes it’s like he is talking about himself. Of course, Messi is too humble to ever talk about himself in as glowing terms as you are about to read, but it is easy to see how his words could be founded in an appreciation of a kindred spirit.
"For me Rooney is the great English player of the generation,” said Messi. “What he’s capable of doing on the field is very special. He's one of the few players that would improve any squad in Europe. There has always been a great deal of respect between myself and Wayne Rooney."
Both Messi and Rooney are incredible natural talents. On their day, they make things impossible to practice look routine. Rooney plays with more power than Messi, and honestly he hasn’t hit the heights he hit in his mid-twenties in quite some time, but he is a player that Messi clearly appreciates.
It’s not hard to see why.
You will notice in that video that many of Rooney’s best goals are from years ago. Unfortunately for Rooney, this is a reflection of how he has fallen off the standard of play he set for himself around 2009.
Rooney and Messi squared off in the 2011 Champions League final. Photo: @SquawkaNews | Twitter
According to Transfermarkt, Rooney scored 34 goals in 44 games in 09/10. After a dip in 10/11 with 16 in 40, he belted in another 34 in 43 in 11/12.
Rooney’s 10/11 haul of 16 goals would prove to be indicative of the next few season. In 12/13 he scored 16 goals in 37 matches, and followed that up in 13/14 and 14/15 with 19 in 40 and 14 in 37 respectively.
This year, Rooney has 14 goals in 32 competitions so far.
Whether or not Messi’s claim that Rooney could improve any team in Europe still holds true today, there is no doubt that there was a time when Rooney was once thought to be that quality of player.
At 30 years old, Rooney is running gout of time to get back to his best. If he does, there's at least one other player who would be very happy.
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