It is fascinating, and all the more so because there is no easy answer as he polarises opinion so much. A personal view is that Rooney has under-achieved on the incredible potential he showed when he burst on the scene and grabbed English football by the scruff of the neck; when he forced Roman Abramovich to pick up the phone, after his hat-trick on his Champions League debut, and call Chelsea executives to demand why his club had not bid for the teenager.