Wayne Rooney reckons Manchester City were right to celebrate derby win over Manchester United, but remain some way off being a great side just yet
Rooney believes City had the right to enjoy their win over Man Utd but have some way to go before becoming Prem's greatest
WAYNE ROONEY claims Manchester City are a long way off being Premier League greats.
He knows all about top teams after playing against Arsenal’s Invincibles when they went unbeaten through the 2003/04 season.
Roo was also in Manchester United’s 2008 team that won the Champions League.
Wildly celebrating last week’s derby is one thing — but Everton striker Rooney reckons City cannot yet compare to that vintage side he was in.
When asked if City are now the greatest team the Premier League has ever seen, Rooney said: “I’m not sure they are quite there.
“They would have to keep going and do a lot more. I would go with the United team from 2008.
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“There are so many great teams throughout the years in the Premier League. This City team need to win trophies and to do it for a longer period to be in that bracket.”
Rooney was travelling home from Anfield during the Manchester derby — the fixture he lit up with his scissor-kick almost seven years ago.
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He had just earned a point with his penalty against Liverpool keeper Simon Mignolet, a spot-kick smashed down the middle that he practised 24 hours earlier on the Toffees’ training pitches of Finch Farm.
As a debate raged over whether Dejan Lovren had committed a foul — Rooney believes it WAS a penalty — his old team-mates at United were involved in the infamous tunnel brawl with City.
Listen to Rooney's interview on talkSPORT at 10am
WAYNE ROONEY’S exclusive interview with talkSPORT, with Alan Brazil asking all the questions, airs at 10am today.
The talk is in association with the Wayne Rooney Foundation.
Working with the Foundation, Wayne is raising funds for groups dedicated to helping disadvantaged and vulnerable children including the NSPCC, Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Claire House Children’s Hospice and the Everton Foundation.
So, were City celebrating too much? Would that have happened under Alex Ferguson?
Roo said: “He got a pizza thrown at him! In all the years we played, we had that one incident with Arsenal where it kicked off.
“There have been little incidents where there’s been pushing and shoving but that’s it.
“You play Burnley in the last few years and they must have a music system with them because the noise coming out of their dressing room before and after games is deafening.
“If City win the derby at Old Trafford, they are entitled to celebrate as it is a big game.
“When we won at Old Trafford or Man City, you celebrated in a respectful manner. Playing music is fair enough.”
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The work Pep Guardiola has done with his City players has impressed Rooney. He has seen his former England team-mates improve under the Spaniard.
Roo, in a wide-ranging talkSPORT interview, said: “People say foreign managers coming into England is not good and obviously we want English managers to do well.
“But you look at Guardiola and the way he has improved Raheem Sterling, the way he has improved Fabian Delph and John Stones.
“Some of the ideas they come up with are incredible. I think Guardiola deserves so much credit.
“With virtually the same group of players as last season, they didn’t do as well as they are doing now. But you could see he was trying to get his way of playing across. You can see the work he puts in.”
Yet for all the beautiful football, it is Pep’s so-called ‘water carrier’ that stands out.
Rooney explained: “You go through the players and the one that stands out who has improved so much is Fernandinho. He gives the other players licence to go and play and go and express themselves.
“I think sometimes those players go under the radar a bit. Without those players, the likes of David Silva and Kevin de Bruyne start worrying about what is behind them if they lose the ball.
“They haven’t got that protection — but Fernandinho gives them great cover.”
United may have lost the derby but Roo reckons boss Jose Mourinho has some of the best attacking talent available — it is a case of how to use it.
As United’s greatest goalscorer, Roo has been there before as a youngster wanting to do it all. So he knows what it will take for the likes of forwards Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial to succeed.
Wazza wanted to score goals but also get stuck into games or even track back to defend, which is what he sees in Rashford.
And in Martial he sees a quiet character that needs nurturing to become one of the league’s most dangerous forwards.
He explained: “Martial, ability-wise, is incredible. But it is, ‘How do you get the best out of him?’.
“For me, his best position is inside-left. Knowing Anthony the way I know him, if you get the best out of him he is up there with the best ability-wise.
“Sometimes it is difficult to get to know him as a person or a character because of the way he is, but when you do get to know him, you just keep him happy.”
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Martial, 22, is fighting for his place in the France squad but Roo believes he could be one of the Premier League greats, up there with Dennis Bergkamp.
And United also have Rashford, 20, in whom Rooney sees plenty of himself. Roo was a similar age when he arrived at Old Trafford from Everton in 2004 and had the weight of expectation on his shoulders.
He said: “Sometimes you get criticised and I had it early in my career where I was working too hard. I kept running back.
“It does affect when you get the ball in the opponents’ box. You are a bit leggy after 75 or 80 minutes as you are doing too much work.
“Alex Ferguson sat me down and told me not to do so much work and be ready for when we get chances.
“I feel with Rashford it might be the same when he is running back to the full-back areas.
“It is great that he has that enthusiasm but to get the best out of him going forward he needs to let the defenders and midfielders do their jobs.”