ROO BEAUTY!
4,869 days after his last goal for Everton, Wayne nets the winner at Goodison
EVERTON 1 STOKE CITY 0
“REMEMBER the name,” bellowed the commentator, after Wayne Rooney left David Seaman grasping at thin air as he curled in his first Premier League goal.
Nearly 15 years later his 199th strike in the elite league ghosted past Jack Butland to officially announce his Goodison Park return. No need now to Google the onetime kid from Croxteth who has grown into a footballing giant.
The England striker also seems to like opening days and Stoke City.
This was his eighth goal in the first 90 minutes of action of a new season, equalling the all-time best feats of Alan Shearer and Frank Lampard.
And it was against the Potters that Rooney broke Sir Bobby Charlton’s Manchester United goals record, a late free-kick clocking up his 250th goal for the club.
It had been a relief when the illuminated board registered just one minute of added time to place the seal on a torrid first half lacking energy and invention. But suddenly, like a switch had been flicked, a piece of class to light up a dull affair.
Sandro passed on to Dominic Calvert-lewin for the England Under-20s hero to sweep in a pinpoint cross for Rooney to meet with a decisive header.
“Rooney, Rooney”chants were back in fashion. “A blue, always a blue.” More like: “A goalscorer, always a goalscorer.”
It was reported that the 16-year-old Rooney who ended Arsenal’s 30-game unbeaten run with his wonder goal went home to play with his mates on his mountain bike.
Safe to say that wouldn’t have been repeated last night. Probably back to his palatial Cheshire home and dinner with Coleen and this three lads.
He admitted: “To score was a great moment but we were lucky to go in at the break 1-0 up. The boss then changed it. Scoring at Goodison again was a special moment. It is a huge deal.” Don’t run away, though, with the thought that his manager Ronald Koeman would have slept easily last night.
Rooney’s bear hug on goalkeeper Jordan Pickford said it all about Everton’s stop-start display. In the dying seconds the Welcome Home Rooney headlines were in danger as Xherdan Shaqiri weaved his way forward and let fly with a leftfooted missile.
Pickford then showed why Everton had invested £30m in the Sunderland stopper, leaping to claw the ball around the post.
Koeman added: “It was a great save from Jordan.
“It was not the best performance at home.
“But there was one player in an Everton shirt from the first second to the last who looked comfortable on the ball, who made the right decisions and scored a great goal. That’s why we signed Wayne.”
His three-man backline only lasted 45 minutes, while £24m midfielder Davy Klaassen only lasted a further 15 minutes before being hooked in favour of Tom Davies who upped the Everton tempo.
The sooner Swansea’s Gylfi Sigurdsson arrives at Goodison the better or, barring that, the cold war over Ross Barkley defrosts.
Stoke deserved a point with diligent approach play. It lacked punch and the goal famine continues for Saido Berahino. It’s now 27 Premier League games without notching.
Manager Mark Hughes said: “We did fine. We had a lot of control in the first half – probably the only chance Everton created was the quality ball put into the box for you-know-who.”