Ekitike scored twice in Liverpool's win against Newcastle on Saturday.
And Rooney says the Frenchman deserves praise for the way he's stepped up in the absence of injured centre-forward Alexander Isak.
"I'd be more worried if I was Isak, sat there watching," Rooney said on the latest episode of The Wayne Rooney Show.
"His Liverpool career just hasn't got up and going yet. Obviously they paid a lot of money for him and these two (Florian Wirtz and Ekitike) seem to have a real good understanding of each other's game and they look like a real threat.
"Ekitike's second goal in particular was brilliant, it reminds me of Romario. A little toe-poke goal but it's instinctive.
"He is the type of player I like to watch. He's not a number nine, he's not a number 10. He drifts out wide, he gets on the ball, brings players into the game and he can score goals. So he's got a bit of everything really."