ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE:ALEX FERGUSON has expressed strong misgivings about whether Wayne Rooney should play anything more than a minor role in England's friendly against Spain next Wednesday. The Manchester United manager said he had "no strong objections" to Fabio Capello including Rooney in his squad, but he is against the striker being prominently involved as he makes his way back from a hamstring injury.
Rooney has missed United’s past five matches and Ferguson is particularly cautious not to try to accelerate his rehabilitation, it being the first time in Rooney’s career that he has experienced hamstring trouble. Although the forward will be in United’s squad at West Ham United tomorrow, Ferguson is reluctant to use him as anything more than a substitute and he hopes Capello will follow suit in Seville.
“The only thing I can do is explain the situation (to Capello) as the physios describe it to me,” Ferguson said. “He (Rooney) is not ready to start the game on Sunday. He’s not even a consideration.”
On the one hand, Ferguson believes it might benefit Rooney to make a second-half appearance in a match that is unlikely to be played at Premier League speed, but on the other hand he thinks his player would benefit from staying in Manchester to work on his fitness. “That’s the area where there has to be a decision,” the manager said. “They have to decide whether it’s worth taking him to Spain just to come on as a sub and play maybe 25 minutes. That’s entirely up to Fabio Capello.”
Capello is expected to be at Upton Park to see whether United, on the back of 12 league games without conceding a goal, can improve on a less impressive run of only one win in their past nine visits to London. As well as monitoring Rooney’s progress, he also wants to look at Michael Carrick on his return to the club where he began his career. Carrick has been playing the best football of his career and Ferguson believes it is time the midfielder started getting more recognition.
“We’ve had a few players - quiet types - who tend to get overlooked and Michael comes into that category,” he said. “You could make the same point about Denis Irwin. Denis used to give us eight or nine (out of 10) every week but he never had the celebrity status of a Ryan Giggs, David Beckham or Eric Cantona.
“It’s not a concern for us because we know what a terrific footballer Michael is. He’s developed physically and improved his defensive play tremendously.”
Ferguson sees no reason why Manchester United should be worried about taking on anyone at present even though they head to West Ham on the back of a woeful run of results in the capital.
Since Cristiano Ronaldo dribbled half the length of the field and crashed home the winner at Fulham in February 2007 which ultimately proved pivotal in that season’s title race, United have made nine visits to London and emerged victorious just once.
Three trips this season have brought nothing better than a couple of draws at Chelsea and Tottenham, so little wonder Ferguson is refusing to look too far ahead in a title race that increasingly looks to involve just one team.
The Hammers boast back-to-back home wins over Ferguson’s men and also still fondly talk of the two league titles they deprived Ferguson of in 1992 and 1995 with heroic performances in the last week of the season.
In addition, the gloom that accompanied the Icelandic banking collapse and subsequent fears over the Hammers’ finances have eased and Gianfranco Zola has taken his side to the fringes of a European place.
GuardianService
