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Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson caused a stir by comparing striker Wayne Rooney to…wait for it; Pele – in a calculating use of words from the Red Devils chief!
Controversial, delusional, mad, insane, ‘gassed’, true or just daring. Whether you can agree with Sir Alex Ferguson mentioning Wayne Rooney in the same breath as arguably the greatest footballer in the history of the game, the Scot’s comments have invariably stoked up much disagreement as well as debate.
“He looks like he is the best British player so far,” the Scotsman told a pre-match conference ahead of their Group C Champions League clash with Benfica.
“But he doesn’t look like a British player but an Argentinian or Brazilian.”
“I think he’s a typical British player, but there have been British players over the last few years, maybe for the last decades who have similar great qualities that makes them great players, whether it’s a Gascoigne, George Best, Bobby Charlton, Denis Law.
“The similarities are that the boy has great courage, he wants to play all the time, he has incredible stamina.
“These are added extras to the talent he has. If you look at Pele for instance, he was a very aggressive attacker also who could look after himself, so can Rooney.
“They have similarities that way — strength, speed, determination, but he’s white, completely white.”
Putting biasness aside, In The Stands carefully examines the statistics and facts necessary to compare the two footballing superstars, from which we leave it to yourselves to come to a conclusion on Fergie’s comments.
Wayne (Mark) Rooney’s Career Stats:
Born: October 24, 1985 in Croxteth, Livepool.
Height: 5ft 10in
Clubs: Everton (2002-04), Manchester United (2004-).
All Club Appearances: 288 All Club Goals: 125
Club Honours: Premier League Titles (4), Carling Cup (2), 1 Champions League Crown.
International Caps: 72 International Goals: 28 Age on International Debut: 17 World Cup Winners’ Medals: 0
Career/Football Highlight: Wayne Rooney absolutely ripped apart Euro 2004 before limping off injured during England’s quarter-final defeat to Portugal.
‘Wazza’ also bagged UEFA Champions League glory in 2008 against Chelsea and has four Premier League crowns to his name.
Edison “Edson” Arantes do Nascimento, aka; ‘Pele’ Stats:
Born: October 23, 1940 in Tres Coracoes, Brazil.
Height: 5ft 8in
Clubs: Santos (1956-74), New York Cosmos (1975-77).
All Club Appearances: 720 All club goals: 685 (1087 if you include friendlies)
Club Honours: Sao Paulo State Championship (4), Brazil Cup (3), Copa-Libertadores (2) Intercontinental Cup (2), NASL.
International Caps: 92 International Goals: 77 Debut: 16 World Cup winners’ medals: 3
Career/Football Highlight: Winning three World Cups in 1958, 1962 and perhaps most memorably in 1970. Being a world ambassador for the ‘beautiful game’. Famously also advertised Viagra!
So the facts and figures are there for all to see. Let In The Stands know your views. Was Fergie right to mention Rooney and Pele in the same breath?
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