It’s been 11 years since Wayne Rooney headed for the Goodison Park exit door, so it perhaps comes as little surprise that he found his Everton comeback a little daunting at first.
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Former Everton forward Wayne Rooney was given a standing ovation by the club’s fans when he came on as a substitute for the Blues in Duncan Ferguson’s testimonial at Goodison Park.
“I did consider one or two other players [to play in the testimonial] but Wayne is still playing and I wanted him back for that personal touch”, Ferguson, now Everton’s first-team coach, said.
Rooney made a 15 minute cameo against Villarreal on Sunday as nearly 35,000 fans turned up for Duncan Ferguson’s testimonial game.
“I enjoyed it. It is nice to come back here and the fans gave me a great reception, which obviously I was delighted with”. “The day brought back a lot of memories”.
Rooney’s reception included boos and cheers from the home crowd – many on Merseyside still unhappy at the manner of his exit to United in 2004 – while Ferguson was treated to a rapturous welcome.
Current assistant manager Ferguson was introduced not long after, but it was youngster Ty Browning who scored a consolation for the Premier League side with a late header. Unfortunately it didn’t go in but it was a great occasion and great to get out on the pitch with Duncan again. “We hit it off on the pitch from the start – he did what I told him to do but about three weeks later he was telling me what to do!”
“Of course, it was a bit different today”.
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“I was a little bit nervous as I didn’t know what to expect”.
