Rooney stepped on the Wembley Stadium, suiting on the England’s No. 10 jersey for the last time. The last back Rooney left to the English was him wiping tears. This farewell game for Rooney was quite touching, but the controversy about it is still endless.
In August 2017, Rooney officially announced his retire from the England national team, but it was not until 15 months later that Rooney’s farewell game was officially held. The reasons for the late farewell game, on the one hand, is that England has to prepare for the World Cup last year so they can’t manage a proper time for it. On the one hand, England has not had a tradition of holding a farewell game for individuals.
There are a lot of controversies about this farewell game. The legendary England striker Hiller said in his column: Rooney’s farewell to the fans at Wembley is good, but I still have to say that playing for England is an honor, England should do this for Rooney. If the FA wants to have a ceremony, why not invite him to see the game as a guest? It is good that the FA wants to show respect to Rooney, but they should not turn an international competition into a farewell game.
Besides, The Guardian sports editor Simon Bulton bluntly said, “No English player has ever received such a treatment. No matter how much Rooney has contributed to the England team, he should not break this tradition.”
There are also some people who support this game. Peter Crouch is particularly uncomfortable with the objections. In his Daily Mail personal column, the former England international clarifies his point of view in the first sentence, refuting those who questioned Rooney’s farewell game, “Please stop being critical, Rooney is worthy of a farewell at Wembley.” He also said he didn’t understand if there was any question about it.
But, unluckily, in England, people like Crouch is still a minority. Since the news Rooney would get a farewell game, creating a precedent for the Three Lions was confirmed, English media and many famous celebrities all have negative comments.
Regarding the controversies, Rooney himself is quite calm. In an interview before the game, he said: “The most important thing is that the FA has communicated with the players. We think this is the right. We have never done this before, but I hope that After 10-15 years, we can still sit here and hold a commemorative game for Kane, who may break the scoring record. This is a different matter, I did not ask people to agree. I think it si a huge honor that FA gave me the chance to play such a game.”
What is the problem with Rooney’s farewell game? Crouch doesn’t understand! Many people may don’t understand, either!
If you simply look at the contribution he has made to the England team, who else is worthy of a farewell game than Rooney? Not every English player can wear the three lions’ jerseys and play 120 games and score 53 goals. Not every English player has the ability to become the most scoring player of the Three Lions. Not every England player at the age of 17 will be able to play for the country. If these achievements are not enough for a farewell game, then what can be enough?
Even if he broke the tradition that England has never held a farewell game for any player, what wrong with it? Some so-called tradition maybe just need to be broken, especially not a glorious one like this.
Those English media and celebrities who have objective opinion maybe are unwilling to accept new things and always follow all the inherent traditions. In Rooney’s case, the British seems to be a little narrow-minded.
In Rooney’s career in England national team, there have been joys and sorrows. From the youth storm of the 2004 European Cup to the red card of the 2006 World Cup and then to the first World Cup goal in 2014, Rooney’s national team career is not perfect. It can even be said to be a little bitter, but scoring 53 goals for England in 120 games has aleady made him a legend.