Sunday 29 November 2015 11:31, UK
Wayne Rooney is still struggling to come to terms with the role Louis van Gaal wants him to play at Manchester United, says Sunday Mirror sports columnist Andy Dunn.
Rooney, who has scored just two Premier League goals this season, struggled to make an impact in his side's 1-1 draw at Leicester on Saturday Night Football.
The 30-year-old was substituted after 68 minutes at the King Power Stadium after taking a kick to the chest from Robert Huth, but Dunn thinks Rooney is still struggling to get to grips with Van Gaal's methods.
"It's taken him 15 months to get the goals Jamie Vardy has scored in this record breaking run," Dunn told the Sunday Supplement.
"He'll know that's not good enough but he does look off the pace physically and mentally. He looks a bit jaded.
"However, when I look at him in this United side I also think Rooney looks unsure of his role in the team during game time. You don't know whether he's the 10. You don't know whether actually Van Gaal's given him a license to get further forward or whether it's to drop back when things change around.
Even after 18 months, I think he's still struggling to come to terms with what Van Gaal specifically wants out of him.
"Yesterday he was sort of an itinerant figure all over the pitch which then seemed to affect his execution and his finishing.
"He snatched at a couple of volleys and he gave away possession high up the pitch which is unlike him. Even after 18 months or so, I think he's still struggling to come to terms with what Van Gaal specifically wants out of him."
Despite Rooney's poor domestic form, he has enjoyed better fortunes on the international stage, scoring his 50th goal during England's 2-0 win over Switzerland in September to become England's all-time record goalscorer.
Rooney also found the net as Roy Hodgson's side beat France at Wembley earlier this month, but The Sun's Shaun Custis thinks the striker's indifferent performances for Manchester United are casting doubt on his place in England's starting line-up.
"You cannot see how Rooney is going to justify his place for England next summer," Custis said.
"I'm a big Rooney fan. He's scored lots of goals for England but at the moment he just doesn't justify a place. I wish he would because I think he's a great player.
"Eventually there will come a time when he will have to [drop him]. You champion Vardy, Kane and Barkley but you can't play them all. It's going to be hard for Rooney to justify a place in that team.
"He may still go as captain and he may be right for the squad but you can't justify him in the starting line up at the moment. It's very hard.
"If you didn't know Rooney at all and you were watching the Premier League there is no way on earth you would be picking him for a national side," he added.
"You are probably looking at Manchester United and wondering why that lad plays, and yet he's got so much going for him.
"He's been such a good player but you watch him against PSV the other night dropping back deep to get the ball and not actually having the energy to get back up and get on the end of it. That's just not him."
