How to keep Wayne Rooney calm – pass the ball better

Posted Wednesday, June 09, 2010 by theguardian.com

Should we be worried about Wayne? Certainly the South African referee Jeff Selogilwe thinks so. "He must learn to control his temper. He could get sent off in the World Cup if he uses language like that," was the referee's verdict after England's rather geriatric warm-up victory over Platinum Stars. Alexi Lalas, a former USA World Cup captain, agrees. "I hope Wayne Rooney has a temper tantrum," Lalas jeered from a defiantly partial section of the sidelines this week. "I hope he has a swing at someone and gets thrown out. I'd love to see him act like a baby. That would be fine with me."

These are not particularly pleasant sentiments and no doubt their airing has much to do with Lalas's current role as a feisty TV pundit. But still, it is slightly alarming to hear this kind of thing being trumpeted about the place by those with an interest in seeing England fail.

This is a problem we thought had gone away. There have been two major incidents of this type in Rooney's England career: his substitution during the friendly against Spain in 2004 for his own good and the red card at the 2006 World Cup for stamping on Ricardo Carvalho. But nothing much in the last four years, during which Rooney has appeared not just calmer, but also more effective.

Against this, in that period he also has not played in a major international tournament overseen by non-European referees. There may simply be a clash of cultures here, one that Rooney will need to absorb above all. There is no doubt referees in the Premier League "manage" him at times. If Rooney was booked every time he said "fuck you" during a domestic match he would rarely play more than a half of football. As it is, he has only ever been sent off once by an English referee. Even in the Champions League his reputation, not as a dirty or niggly player, but as a voluble and committed one, precedes him. He does express his frustration; there is a degree of familiarity with this, and some sensible leniency.

The World Cup will be different. These will be unfamiliar faces. The need to be courteous to strangers also applies to footballers and hopefully the brush with Selogilwe will be a timely reminder. Rooney has been around long enough to know all this. Now he has at least received a reminder.

On the other hand, maybe there are special circumstances at work here. England's tactical approach could be a factor. Against Japan and the Platinum Stars Fabio Capello spent half-time urging his players to press their opponents and to harry them in possession. Rooney does not need encouragement to do this. He needs the opposite. He needs the air taken out of him. He needs instead to be told to concentrate on attacking and on scoring goals.

Also, there is the sense that a certain vital momentum has ebbed from England's play at exactly the wrong moment. Qualification was a stirringly forceful affair. Post-qualification has been fiddly and meandering and lacking in that vital groan of turbo-kick. Rooney is a momentum player. He does not idle and choose his moments. He wants to feel a sense of forward motion and anything else both frustrates and galvanises him.

Still, the overriding feeling – and hope – is that this is a non-issue, a footling amuse-bouche born of pre-tournament tension and an unblinking media focus, restlessly mob-handed and already ravenous for titbits and clues and prompts.

There are good reasons to think this will be the story this time around. First, it is important to look at the reasons Rooney gets frustrated. The USA may well try to wind him up by concerted physical pressure, but Rooney is unlikely to be bothered by this. You can kick him. You can barge him. You can niggle him. He doesn't really mind. Rooney is hugely strong physically. He boxed in his teens. You can stand on his foot if you like, or pinch him at a corner. He isn't David Beckham. Generally, this kind of thing won't get to him.

What frustrates Rooney is a lack of possession. When England play poorly, or are starved of the ball, he goes looking for it. Perhaps this is why he hasn't tended to lose his temper playing for United (clashes with Tal Ben Haim aside) or during the qualifiers for the World Cup, when England were unusually dominant. If England pass the ball better, the more likely Rooney will remain calm. There is a correlation here.

You would also hope that the renewed prominence of Steven Gerrard might help. Gerrard is now captain and may well play close to Rooney as the tournament progresses. He has a similar craving for urgency, but is also perhaps more used to playing in a system, under Rafa Benítez at Liverpool, where possession is surrendered for periods and his own explosiveness used sparingly. In fact Benítez's Liverpool, at their counter-attacking Champions League best, could be England's model all round; with Gerrard by extension a good example for Rooney in adapting to the pressures this occasionally destructive style brings to a team's exceptional, and exceptionally energetic, talents.

This is, let's not forget, a huge moment in Rooney's career. He is under great pressure as England's keenest hope at a World Cup. When it comes to managing this, the best role models are always the greatest players: Diego Maradona was kicked relentlessly in the 1986 World Cup. He faded for long periods during the final, marked superbly by Lothar Matthäus, but still chose his moments to provide vital promptings, including the pass for the winning goal.

These are high standards indeed, but Rooney has the talent to light up the current tournament. Top-level sport has always been as much about control as inspiration. He has been warned and will surely learn from it. Plus now he has a duty – to England and also to football itself – to make Alexi Lalas look a little silly on Saturday night.