Wayne Rooney overshadowed by Cristiano Ronaldo?
They had once ruled the crowd cheering their heart out at Old Trafford together. But as time passed, Cristiano Ronaldo has established himself in a league of his own, which is unfortunately unmatched by Wayne Rooney, a great player himself. Lets take a relevant look at whether the speculation that Rooney is overshadowed by Ronaldo’s speculation buzzing all around is indeed true.
If you happen to be one of Cristiano Ronaldo’s 32.8 million followers on Instagram, you have witnessed the torrent of selfies he has been posting recently. If it seemed too self-obsessed to be the behavior of a man respected throughout the sports fraternity for his modesty, we now know the reason for it. But be assured, this is not merely a statement reeking of narcissism, but it indeed has a higher commercial purpose. It’s a promotional venture for Ronaldo’s upcoming movie that hits the cinema screens on November 9.
Produced by the squad who empossibled the biographical movies Senna and Amy, similar to those works it carries a single name title: Ronaldo. And the player has been giving his utmost effort to publicise it in the most logical way: by promoting himself.
Witnessing this self-indulgent venture it is barely possible not to end up comparing it with Gary Lineker’s gentle soft-soap observation of Wayne Rooney broadcast recently.
Rooney and Ronaldo do share a history together, being Manchester United team-mates once. But where once they were on a somewhat unidirectional trajectory, their paths have taken significantly different crosses.
At the 2006 World Cup,when they were part of the national teams, Rooney was already the senior figure, superior in renown, significance and worth.
Nine years later, Rooney somehow remains locally important, but Ronaldo has become global. Even the crude way in which they are established in celluloid form vouches for the contrast in their relative status.
Rooney was the subject of a TV show broadcast in his homeland; Ronaldo has a enormous budget movie made about him, given a global cinema release. While Rooney is a telly face, Ronaldo is the emblem of Hollywood.
But the most striking difference between the two of them is this.
What had blown us most forcefully was when we realised that Lineker’s gently gripping piece was the incessant poignant reminder of what a great player Rooney used to be. What is ensured while watching the rage the latest film has created is what a great player Ronaldo still is.
Oh, how the table has turned!