Fergie predicted Rooney troubles

Sir Alex Ferguson always thought Wayne Rooney would struggle to make an impact at Euro 2012 after being suspended for the first two group games.

Boss feels break worked against striker at Euro 2012

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed he always thought Wayne Rooney would struggle to make an impact at Euro 2012 after being suspended for England's first two group games. Rooney's sending off in the final qualifying game against Montenegro last autumn was initially going to keep him out of all three of England's group encounters at the finals, but that was later reduced to two on appeal. However, the suspension did mean that there was a big gap between his final competitive game for United in May and England's game against Ukraine on 19th June, with only a 37-minute friendly appearance against Belgium in between. Despite scoring the winner against the Ukraine, Rooney laboured in the quarter-final against Italy, something that didn't surprise his club manager. "I always thought it was difficult," said Ferguson. "We know him better than anybody and he needs a lot of football. "Wayne's a stocky lad. If he misses a couple of games, it takes him three or four to come back. "He didn't look as sharp as normal [against Italy]. It is very hard to play two big games in four days."

Pressure

Ferguson also admits that as England's talisman, there is a huge amount of pressure on Rooney's shoulders and he is expected to play well every game. The 69-year-old grudgingly accepts that Rooney has to be able deal with such pressure in the modern game, simply because he is such a talented player. "It's a fact of life," Ferguson added. "I read an article that Argentina have never taken to Messi. Then he goes and scores a hat-trick against Brazil with that incredible third goal. "People were saying Spain weren't the force they were, then Xavi produces the kind of performance he did. It was brilliant. "Great players have to deal with these things."