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Even in the madcap world that is Wayne Rooney’s football life, last week was pretty crazy.

In less than 48 hours the Reds and England captain went from the rare privilege of being a virtually guaranteed pick for Old Trafford boss Louis van Gaal to being publicly condemned as not being a good enough striker!

That’s a gift of another interesting chapter for Rooney’s next book. His publishers must be rubbing their hands.

Just when you thought there was a bit of serenity about the 28-year-old’s career Van Gaal goes and throws in that bombshell before the Leicester City match.

For 33 days at the start of this season there was a calmness and a new look about Rooney’s career.

On August 13 he was named as United’s new club captain with van Gaal saying, “‘Wayne has shown a great attitude towards everything he does. I have been very impressed by his professionalism and his attitude to training and to my philosophy.

"He is a great inspiration to the younger members of the team and I believe he will put his heart and soul into his captaincy role.”

Fifteen days later England boss Roy Hodgson followed suit and announced him as the new leader of the national side.

On September 8 he led the Three Lions to a Euro 2016 qualifier victory in Switzerland as England kicked off their group with a 2-0 success in what is on paper the hardest match of the section.

Six days later after the international break he scores as United cruise to a 4-0 triumph against QPR in his first success with the Reds armband on.

Everything in the garden seemed rosy.

That picture was even glossier last Friday around 4pm when Van Gaal told the media at his weekly pre-match conference at Carrington that Rooney was all but first name on his team sheet every match.

“There are always players you put in a team. My captain shall always play,” said the Dutch boss.

“I don’t think any player is fixed. Only the captain has more privileges but no other player has privileges. Every player knows that when you see how I manage my teams.”

Rooney must have travelled to Leicester on Saturday for United’s overnight stop in the East Midlands full of the joys.

Then around an hour before kick off at the King Power Stadium the United manager is in front of the Sky cameras for a pre-match interview and he chucked in his grenade.

“I was not so satisfied with Rooney as a striker and Mata as midfielder,” Van Gaal said.

“That is why I changed. Rooney can play in more positions, he’s a multi-functional player and I have tried him in a striker’s position. He has played well, but not spectacular. Falcao is a striker and I think he can do it better.”

Suddenly the player who is 20 goals off overtaking 60s goal machine Denis Law and moving up into second place in United’s all time goalscorers hit list and whose goal against QPR puts him just 32 off knocking Sir Bobby Charlton from the number one spot is not a good striker!

Van Gaal is brutally and publicly honest at times but perhaps that was too honest and public.

At Leicester in the number 10 role, at Juan Mata’s expense, Rooney was marked out of the game by 34-year-old Esteban Cambiasso making his Foxes home debut.

Rooney did escape the former Inter Milan legend briefly to set up Angel Di Maria’s sensational goal but Cambiasso was head and shoulders the winner in that contest casting doubts over whether Rooney is an effective player ‘in the hole’.

Once again Rooney’s position that Sir Alex Ferguson and Roy Hodgson have had difficulty defining at times is back as a topic of debate.

The player himself accepts his game has changed, saying recently: “I’m not the player I was. But I feel I have progressed my game.

"I agree with the people who say my game has changed. I did too much running when I was younger and then didn’t have the energy to get myself into goalscoring positions in the box.

“I’m a cleverer player now and know when to run into the box and when not to, and as a result more chances have come my way and I’ve scored a lot more goals for the club.

“But I am happy to play out wide. I can do a job there and I can do a job up front. It depends on the situation of each game and what the manager wants me to do. I don’t think anyone can put a finger on my best position, but I am adaptable."

Rooney is certainly correct with that last sentence. He can operate in different roles but some of football’s most notable managers have not been able to discover his best position.

Van Gaal’s honesty has stirred up Rooney’s world once more.