'Fantastic for the club' – Kai Rooney tipped to make major impact at Man Utd – if he can follow in dad Wayne's footsteps and seal first-team breakthrough
Kai Rooney is being tipped to emulate the achievements of his record-breaking father Wayne by making a major impact at Manchester United. Former Red Devils striker Fraizer Campbell has told GOAL, during an exclusive interview, that it would be āfantastic for the clubā to see another Rooney leading the line at some point in the not too distant future.
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ToggleYamal & Dowman prove to Rooney that anything is possible
Rooney junior is only 15 years of age, but the hottest of prospects have been making senior breakthroughs at that stage of their respective careers. Lamine Yamal earned his big break at Barcelona while in his mid-teens, while Max Dowman has done likewise at Arsenal.
There is no suggestion that Kai is knocking on Ruben Amorimās door at Old Trafford just yet, but he continues to make positive progress down that path. He has been promoted through the age groups in Unitedās academy system, allowing him to prove his worth to club bosses.
Big pressure is being lumped onto his young shoulders, with Wayne Rooney still Unitedās all-time leading scorer with 253 efforts to his name. He won Premier League and Champions League titles with the Red Devils.
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Will Kai Rooney follow Wayne into the Man Utd team?
Kai is eager to follow in illustrious footsteps, and has been catching the eye in a fabled academy. Many are suggesting that he is capable of matching his famous father by becoming a talismanic forward for Premier League heavyweights.
Quizzed on whether that could happen, ex-United star Campbell – speaking in association with – told GOAL: āThat would be fantastic. Heās played up for the 18s and the 23s this season, I think. Heās doing really, really well. If heās anything like his dad, it would be fantastic for the club because Rooney was unbelievable in his playing days – still now, he played in the legends game and heās still got the technique, that drive and hunger. It would be great for Wayne, Coleen and the family to see another Rooney pulling on the Man United shirt. It would be great for the fans as well.ā
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Hot prospect: Kai Rooney exciting those at Old Trafford
Campbell is not the first former United player to back Kai Rooney for senior opportunities. Wes Brown has previously told GOAL of that family name earning further recognition in Manchester: āIām pretty sure if you played for a club and your son comes through, and heās at a stage now where heās like YTS, going to training everyday, then at any point you could be picked by the manager and told āyouāre training with usā or āyouāre in a gameā. It will be a great experience.
āKai, knowing the lad he is, heāll just work very hard. He will have his head down. Obviously, his dad has legendary status, but itās all about Kai. He will have to work and do everything himself, make sure he puts the graft in and keeps on learning.
āAll you can hope for, even when I was a kid, is getting an opportunity. If you do, can you take it? Heās done really well to get where he is at the moment because Iām guessing at some point, it will have been difficult for him.ā
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Wayne & Coleen helping to keep Kai grounded
Wayne has tended to stay away from Kaiās matches, in order to avoid becoming a distraction, while mother Coleen is doing her best to ensure that a future away from professional football is also being taken into account.
A source has told of that process: āAll the boys are obsessed with football, so Coleenās had no choice but to embrace it. She wasnāt sure how good they would be, but thereās no denying that Kai has his dadās talents, and has the potential to make it big.
āKai is very good, and Coleen and Wayne have always drummed into him that he has to train hard and dedicate himself to it if he wants to make it. But Coleen is determined that heāll stay grounded, whatever happens. She also knows sheāll have to prepare him for the disappointment if it doesnāt work out. The Rooney name will only get him so far.ā
It remains to be seen whether Kai Rooney – who has scored plenty of goals for United at youth level while helping them to trophy wins – will earn first-team opportunities. His dad will always be on hand to offer advice if it is required, with Wayne earning wonderkid status himself when making a senior breakthrough with Everton at the age of 16.
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