By England legend Wayne Rooney has dismissed suggestions that recent national teams have shown a better attitude than his own so-called “Golden Generation,” insisting that his side simply “didn’t quite manage to get over the line.”
Former England captain Steven Gerrard sparked debate earlier this week when he claimed their generation’s failure to win trophies was down to key players being “egotistical losers,” adding that “we were not a team.”
Rooney, who represented England 120 times and scored a then-record 53 goals between 2003 and 2018, sees things differently; “Obviously, we didn’t win anything,” said the former Manchester United striker. “I wouldn’t quite put it that way, but I understand what he means. There were a lot of big personalities in the dressing room.
I wouldn’t say the current squads have a better attitude, that would be disrespectful to us as players because we worked hard, we tried. We just didn’t quite manage to do it. “When you look back at the players we had, could we have done better? Probably. But it just wasn’t meant to be.”
Rooney continued: “These days, players from rival clubs often train together before pre-season, like Phil Foden and Marcus Rashford, for example. “It’s a different generation now. The media coverage is much better, and the players have a stronger relationship with journalists. From the outside, that gives a more positive impression.”
Steven Gerrard, speaking as a guest on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, said that former Manchester United and Liverpool players now get along better as pundits than they ever did as England teammates. “I didn’t feel part of a team,” Gerrard admitted. “I didn’t feel connected with my England teammates.”
In response, Rooney said: “It was difficult back then to have that kind of relationship between Liverpool and Manchester United players, it’s easier now. “I speak to Steven all the time these days. You can have a better relationship now, you can share a drink, relax more
“I got along with everyone, but I could see that players like Becks [David Beckham], Gary Neville, and Scholesy [Paul Scholes] weren’t going to be close to the Liverpool lads. “But one thing’s for sure, everyone worked hard for each other. That was never the problem. We just didn’t manage to get over the line. I never saw a lack of unity.”
Like Gerrard, Rooney featured in six major tournaments for England but never made it beyond the quarter-finals, Still, he insisted the squad always “100% believed we could win for sure.”
