With the current form of Wayne Rooney the main subject of discussion among the football media, Wigan manager Paul Jewell is rightly worried about the damage this debate could cause his own side.
The Latics are the next domestic team in United and RooneyÂ’s sights following the completion of the latest round of international fixtures. Given RooneyÂ’s demolition job on Wigan in last seasonÂ’s Carling Cup final and in the league at Old Trafford, Jewell knows his defence could be in for a backlash.
"Rooney is a brilliant footballer and, believe me, there is so much more to this game than scoring goals,” countered Jewell when questioned about Wayne’s current goal ‘drought’.
"I find it amazing, but not surprising, that one of the best players in the world is being criticised. There's nothing this lad cannot do. He can lead the line brilliantly, he has phenomenal strength and has a wonderful football brain. Rooney is quite simply sensational. He has the ability to win matches single-handedly.
"We saw for ourselves last season what he's capable of but people can say what they like about him, the only thing he will be interested in is wanting to know if his manager has picked him. This applies to footballers across the board."