Rooney to Real Madrid?
Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney has 18 months remaining on his contract and is increasingly being linked with a move away from Manchester. Spanish giants Real Madrid have been linked with a move for the Englishman, and they would reportedly prefer to wait for the summer to swoop in and sign him on the cheap. While Real Madrid are on the look-out for a striker, a move for the 28-year old may not be the best option for Los Blancos.
Rooney has been playing in the hole behind the center forward, and this is where his best performances of late have come. Even though he gets goals on a regular basis, he is not the out-and-out striker that Madrid so desperately need. While Rooney would undoubtedly adapt to the style of football, his starting position is a bit too deep for him to be the ideal solution at the Bernabeu.
That being said, the 28-year old has the ability, both mental and skills, to make the most of the opportunity should it come his way. He would undoubtedly relish the chance to link up with Cristiano Ronaldo once again, and with Ronaldo and Bale playing as wing forwards, Rooney may just fit in the side as a false-9 in a role similar to the one played by Lionel Messi at Barcelona, where he’ll have the freedom to control the game.
At Real, a similar role is performed by Isco, who generally is the bridge between midfield and attack. Rooney dropping deeper to get involved in the build-up play may end up crowding the area just outside the box with no one in the box to finish off the move. Rooney is not a poacher and is ideally more of a support striker, and with him in the side, Madrid will need to play another striker, reverting to a sort of 4-2-4 formation. Manager Carlo Ancelotti may not like this solution, and any move for Rooney will have to be made keeping this in mind.
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