Wayne Rooney might not be having the best of seasons, but he still knows where the goal is.
The England
forward midfielder forward was back in the starting XI for Manchester United's Europa League match against Feyenoord, a game in which United needed to avoid defeat to remain in the competition.
Rooney was paired with Zlatan Ibrahimovic at Old Trafford, and the ex-Everton man broke the deadlock 10 minutes before half-time with a deft finish past former Liverpool goalkeeper Brad Jones.
https://twitter.com/TopFlightTalk/status/801895449393328129
After the couple of weeks Rooney has had - including some unwanted headlines for his off-field behaviour - it seemed inevitable that he would find the net against the Dutch side.
For all football's unpredictability, sometimes the narrative is so powerful it just forces certain things to happen.
Just ask Arnie Lopez.
https://twitter.com/reach_4_starnie/status/801888230937415680
Or Lil Rooney Vert
https://twitter.com/YungKakarot/status/801888235236585472
Rich didn't have his doubts
https://twitter.com/Richard7Hill/status/801888336981934080
And as for D.R.W.? We can't believe you even needed to ask.
https://twitter.com/DD_Dunstan/status/801888487188426752
And it wasn't just the off-field distractions which made Rooney's strike an inevitability.
Indeed, as MT points out, there was another crucial factor at play.
https://twitter.com/StraightAtHim/status/801888501188927488
The goal brought up the most important of personal milestones for the 31-year-old.
https://twitter.com/oilysailor/status/801889946126651393
No, wait, this one.
https://twitter.com/tomwfootball/status/801888633020096512
And it gave him the freedom to...well...
https://twitter.com/danielstorey85/status/801889195627343877
And to think people ever doubted him.
https://twitter.com/brentmaximin/status/801888500425617413
Dick Clerkin makes his GAA Hour debut to talk about a wonderful career and argue passionately with Colm Parkinson over Sky Sports GAA. Subscribe here on iTunes.
