Alex Ferguson compares Wayne Rooney status to that of Gazza

SIR Alex Ferguson believes Wayne Rooney is saddled with the curse of Paul Gascoigne in the sense that every flaw in his character will be used against him.

At the end of a tumultuous weekend, which began with reports of a split with his manager so great United were contemplating selling him during the present transfer window, Rooney was the two-goal hero in United’s FA Cup win over Manchester City. After the final whistle, Rooney reiterated his desire to remain with United “for a long time”. But Ferguson admitted his star man will have to deal with more negative headlines given his status in the game.

“Wayne Rooney is a headline-maker, good or bad,” said Ferguson. “It is the situation that existed many years ago with Paul Gascoigne. We have seen the good stuff today but any flaws will be absolutely annihilated by the press. That is what they are like. That is what we are dealing with. Today was a magnificent performance. There is no problem with the boy’s temperament at all. It is just off-the-field he is going to be spotlighted all the time.”

Despite the victory, Ferguson was not happy. Having watched his side charge into a 3-0 lead, against opponents reduced to 10 men following the dismissal of skipper Vincent Kompany in the early stages of the contest, Ferguson could not believe what he was seeing as City pulled two goals back and then had a handball claim against Phil Jones turned down. “It was ridiculous,” said Ferguson. “We got careless and made City better than they were. They went defensive in the second half and waited for us to make mistakes – and we made them. Fortunately we scrambled away with a victory from a position where we should have battered them.”

Indeed, his anger at Kompany’s red card apart, Blues manager Roberto Mancini was the happier man at the end. “This evening is important for the league,” he said. “Now I think we can win the league because of the character we showed. At Old Trafford, with 10 men for 40 minutes, they lost 6-1. Today we played for 80 minutes with 10 players, scored two goals and didn’t concede any chances. It was a fantastic performance. If we have the same attitude and same strength every game, we will win the league.”

Paul Scholes came on for United in the second-half after it was confirmed that their veteran midfielder had come out of retirement just before the teams were announced. Ferguson said. “He came to see me and said ‘I regret retiring’. “It is a terrific addition to our squad.”