Monday 15 December 2014 13:32, UK
Former Manchester United striker Ole Gunnar Solskjaer believes Wayne Rooney is becoming more like Paul Scholes after playing as a central midfielder in the 3-0 win over Liverpool.
The England captain has played a lot of minutes in a deeper role since Louis van Gaal took over at United and he started the game against Liverpool alongside Juan Mata and Marouane Fellaini in the heart of the Old Trafford midfield.
Rooney grabbed the opening goal with a perfectly timed run from his new position and got through a fair amount of defensive work as United closed the gap on rivals Manchester City to just five points in the Premier League.
Solskjaer, who scored 91 goals for United - including the winning goal in the 1999 Champions League final, thinks Rooney suits playing in central midfield and compared him to his former teammate Scholes.
“I think we found a new position for Wayne Rooney, every day he looks more and more like Paul Scholes,” he said.
“The difference today was on 20 minutes when Mata and Rooney adjusted their positions slightly with Mata in behind Gerrard and Allen and Rooney dropping off, getting on the ball. United needed someone to get on the ball and that’s what Rooney did. “
Solskjaer also praised David de Gea's performance against Liverpool and said it was the best he's ever seen from a home goalkeeper at Old Trafford.
The goalkeeper was in inspired form as he kept out what Solskjær called “six clear cut chances” for Liverpool and picked up the Man of the Match award.
“I’ve seen some decent performances from the keepers in my time – [Peter] Schmeichel and [Edwin] Van Der Sar – but that probably was the best I’ve seen at Old Trafford.
“There were six clear cut chances that should have been goals and he saves them. He’s very similar to David Seaman in that he stands up and he’s very difficult to score against. As a striker you want the keeper to make a decision for you but David is staying tall.”
Highlights of Manchester United v Liverpool are available to Sky Go subscribers.
