Rooney: Shades of Keane and Gerrard in Bellingham display
Wayne Rooney compared Jude Bellingham's World Cup performance against Mexico to iconic displays by Steven Gerrard and Roy Keane.
Former England striker Wayne Rooney has said Jude Bellingham's performance in England's World Cup last-16 win over Mexico reminded him of heroic Champions League displays from Steven Gerrard and Roy Keane. The 23-year-old midfielder scored twice in 98 seconds as Thomas Tuchel's side beat Mexico 3-2 with 10 men at the Azteca stadium, setting up a quarter-final clash with Norway. England are chasing their first major trophy since winning the tournament in 1966.
Speaking on his BBC podcast, Rooney likened Bellingham’s display to Gerrard’s in the 2005 Champions League final, when Liverpool came from 3-0 down to beat AC Milan on penalties, and Keane’s famous performance against Juventus that helped Manchester United reach the 1999 European Cup final. "I said Jude Bellingham was going to have a game when we're going to need him to drag us through," Rooney said. "His two goals, the timing, his desire, work rate, hunger – I felt it was reminiscent of Gerrard and Keane."
Rooney rated Bellingham’s performance a "10 out of 10", also praising a brilliant last-ditch tackle to deny Mexico defender Cesar Montes a certain goal just before half-time. "At times defensively he's not always in the right positions, but his desire to get back and make that tackle to help his teammates when they were not having the best game was everything," Rooney added.
