Wayne Rooney like Pelé?! Yes, but only if Pelé was a serial DIVER...

Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson claims that greedy, disloyal, diving thug Wayne Rooney has similarities to the Brazilian maestro Pelé. That may be true in the Twilight Zone, but in reality, Rooney is not fit to lace Pelé's boots.

In what must have been a fit of drunken fantasy, Ferguson observed:

"Look at Pelé. He was a very aggressive attacker as well who could look after himself. So can Rooney. There are similarities that way in strength, speed and determination".

It's worth nothing that Ferguson focuses on the typical attributes associated with British players, rather on the qualities that truly set Pele apart, i.e. flair, technique, vision, imagination and creativity.

Yes, I'll concede that Rooney is an 'aggressive attacker' with 'strength, speed and determination', but that description could be applied to 99% of attacking players; they are not unique characteristics.

Another thing that sets Pele apart from Rooney is his attitude: Pele was/is a gentleman - the living embodiment of the pure joy of football; a great ambassador for the sport, who always played the game in the right spirit.

Rooney embodies everything that's wrong with the modern footballer: he's selfish, greedy, and only it it for himself, and what football can do for *him*.

Oh, and to my knowledge, Pele never besmirched the reputation of the game by constantly diving, which is another modern football trait that defines the way Rooney plays the game.

In 2006, Rooney stated the following:

"I'd never dive. I’d like to think of myself as an honest player. That’s the way I play. I don’t like diving, football doesn’t need it.”

Then, after he dived to win a penalty against Arsenal in September 2009, Rooney made the following laughable claims:

"Everyone who watches me play knows I am an honest player. I play the game as honestly as I can.".

You can say it as much as you like, Wayne, but it doesn't make it true. In any event, the following evidence contradicts his claims:

Exhibit A: Dive v Blackburn (2008)



Exhibit B: Dive v Spurs (2008) Rooney was booked for this one:



Exhibit C: Dive v Arsenal (2004)



Exhibit D: Dive v Arsenal (2009)



Exhibit E: Dive v Chelsea (2008)



Exhibit F: Dive v Slovenia (2009)

In the aftermath of the penalty incident against Slovenia, Wayne Rooney exchanged some words with fellow diver Steven Gerrard. Luckily, a pitch-side microphone picked up what was discussed between England's two most prolific simulators.



Exhibit G: Dive vs. Rangers



Exhibit H: Dive vs. Aston Villa (2009)



I would include Rooney's infamous dive against Villareal in this series but, alas, there is no video footage of it anywhere. The Villareal incident proved once again that Rooney is not only a cheat, but a self-confessed cheat. After the game, Sir Alex Ferguson revealed that Rooney had actually apologised for the dive:

"He apologised to me and said he didn't mean to do that. I think he's been watching Robert Pires too much. At least he apologised to their players. You'd never see Pires do that."

Rooney like 'Pelé? You're having a laugh.

Jaimie Kanwar