The same people who have a go at Lescott for leaving will then want to get rid of Heitinga a player who wants to stay and was our best player last season. Its incredible double standards but thats football.
Rooney is different, he is an Evertonian, him leaving when he did was horrible. Never scored in a derby, never captained his boyhood club etc. He could have stayed a few years and still lived his dream of trophies and all that. I think he is worse.
Players owe us nothing, I reckon fans of the club do though.
Yes. I agree with you Papa. And not once have I supported the 'ship Johnny out' brigade. I am as loyal to players as I expect them to be. It became fashionable to criticise Arteta and Cahill near the end despite years of excellent service. They are players of good character.
Rooney isn't. He treated us ****ly. I don't think it's possible to assess it from an objective standard given the investment of emotion. But I know the two subjective standards, his and my own, and I know if I'd have ****ed us off in the manner he did (which i wouldn't have) I would have at least taken the hostility with some humility, ffs, and understand why the supporters felt shat on. Remember Gary Speed? Absolute gentleman despite the chants. And his were most probably completely unwarranted.
Look at him since. Treating himself to £1k-a-night strippers while his wife is pregnant; the transfer request/wage increase fiasco at United, going out on the lash (with our very own Darron Gibson) when he has training the next day, moaning at the camera after a frankly shambolic performance in the World Cup, generally proving himself to be a nobhead. Quality begets adulation though... United fans have forgiven him because of his performances. Plenty of us seem to have done the same.
That is all this comes down to. Lets bring Lee Trundle out of retirement and get Nugent on a free when he's 30+, they are both good blues, it'd be like coming home. Or how about Dan Gosling? He only left Newcastle to further his career, he's still a blue at heart, Derby winner and everything. Before his knees finally give in I think it's only fitting we give him a couple of years.
Yes, Wayne Rooney is a brilliant player. But he acted like a prick. He is a prick. And giving him the freedom of Goodison to return as bloated, aged 30-something in the twilight of his career when he has amassed a fortune just so he can put in a few half-arsed appearances and so we can enjoy all "prodigal son returns home" headlines and their variations...not for me. I think we should have a little more pride than that.