Tuesday, 10th June, 2014
Jose Mourinho feels that Manchester United’s struggles last season will act as a catalyst for Wayne Rooney in the World Cup.
Mourinho is a known admirer of Rooney and tried to bring the Manchester United striker to Chelsea last summer.
The 51-year-old feels that this will be the World Cup where Rooney shines for England as he is at his “best age.”
“I think it is the World Cup in the right moment. He is not a kid anymore, he is not an old player at the end of his career, he is in what I call the best age”, the Portuguese told Yahoo.
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The Chelsea manager believes that Rooney is a natural leader and feels he can cope with the pressure of being the star of the England national team.
“I think it is his World Cup and I think he has also a role as a leader in the team, a little bit similar that he had also in United this season. He is a guy with responsibilities in the national team, I think he is ready to cope with this pressure.”
Mourinho also feels that Manchester United’s struggles this season will be a motivator for Rooney and can make him even hungrier in Brazil this summer.
“Maybe the fact that the season was not good with the club, maybe that can play also a role, a positive role, a role of somebody who is a natural winner, somebody that likes to win, somebody that every season normally wins something, the fact that this season nothing.
“I think that can play a positive role in his ambition, in his anger to succeed. I have faith in him, I have faith that he can do it.”
Rooney burst onto the international arena with four goals in the 2004 European Championship in Portugal but has so far failed to find the back of the net in a World Cup.
Jose Mourinho is an exclusive analyst for Yahoo’s worldwide football coverage, www.yahoo.co.uk/worldcup is the only place to read all his expert opinions during the FIFA World Cup 2014.
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