Man Utd's Neville: Rooney influence as great as Keane
Manchester United captain Gary Neville says Wayne Rooney is as big influence on the club as legend Roy Keane.
Rooney is battling to be fit for Sunday's clash at Liverpool and Neville said: "Sir Alex said Wayne could easily be one of the best players in the world.
"Personally, I wouldn't swap him for anybody - he has such a big influence on our team. Sometimes the world's best player accolades go to people who are the most eye-catching and skilful.
"Rooney obviously has great skill but he also has incredible team qualities - his workrate, his defending and his goalscoring abilities all stand out.
"He's simply a fantastic all-round player."
Neville compares Rooney's influence on United to that of former captain Roy Keane.
He added: "Wayne's very important, he's infectious and sets the tone.
"Obviously we have a few people who do that but he has a fantastic desire that transmits itself to the rest of the team. In some ways, you see a little bit of Roy Keane's character in Rooney and the way he plays.
"There are always areas in which players can improve - even players who are over 35 will say they can improve. So certainly Rooney in his early 20s is someone who will get better with experience - and that is great for United fans."
Click here for more Manchester United news and Sir Alex opinion
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Results & Fixtures
Matches
| Home | Away | Score | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat Feb 11th | |||
| Manchester United | Liverpool | 2 - 1 | 12:45 |
| Fulham | Stoke City | 2 - 1 | 15:00 |
| Blackburn Rovers | Queens Park Rangers | 3 - 2 | 15:00 |
| Bolton Wanderers | Wigan Athletic | 1 - 2 | 15:00 |
| Sunderland | Arsenal | 1 - 2 | 15:00 |
| Everton | Chelsea | 2 - 0 | 15:00 |
| Swansea City | Norwich City | 2 - 3 | 15:00 |
| Aston Villa | Manchester City | - | 15:00 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Newcastle United | 5 - 0 | 17:30 |
| Sun Feb 12th | |||
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | West Bromwich Albion | - | 13:30 |
| Aston Villa | Manchester City | - | 16:00 |
Tables
| Team | P | W | D | L | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester United | 25 | 18 | 4 | 3 | 36 | 58 |
| Manchester City | 24 | 18 | 3 | 3 | 44 | 57 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 25 | 16 | 5 | 4 | 24 | 53 |
| Arsenal | 25 | 13 | 4 | 8 | 13 | 43 |
| Chelsea | 25 | 12 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 43 |
| Newcastle United | 25 | 12 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 42 |
| Liverpool | 25 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 39 |
| Norwich City | 25 | 9 | 8 | 8 | -4 | 35 |
| Sunderland | 25 | 9 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 33 |
| Everton | 25 | 9 | 6 | 10 | -1 | 33 |
| Swansea City | 25 | 7 | 9 | 9 | -4 | 30 |
| Fulham | 25 | 7 | 9 | 9 | -5 | 30 |
| Stoke City | 25 | 8 | 6 | 11 | -14 | 30 |
| Aston Villa | 24 | 6 | 10 | 8 | -4 | 28 |
| West Bromwich Albion | 24 | 7 | 5 | 12 | -10 | 26 |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 24 | 5 | 6 | 13 | -17 | 21 |
| Queens Park Rangers | 25 | 5 | 6 | 14 | -17 | 21 |
| Blackburn Rovers | 25 | 5 | 6 | 14 | -19 | 21 |
| Bolton Wanderers | 25 | 6 | 2 | 17 | -22 | 20 |
| Wigan Athletic | 25 | 4 | 7 | 14 | -27 | 19 |
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Comments (4)
Gerrard + Torres = ROONEY
so dumb. MU is bigger than just 1 player. the same was true before with Ronaldo, the same is true with Rooney.
I love manutd, and rooney is our key player,if there is no rooney there is no man utd.
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