'Rooney can become Man U's new Bobby Charlton'

London, Nov 27(ANI): Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney can become the club's new Bobby Charlton, Red Devil legend Sammy McIlroy has said.

"Wayne has all the attributes to be a fantastic central midfield player and become the new Bobby Charlton for United and England. Bobby played wide left before he made the move inside and developed into the world class player we all remember," the Daily Mirror quoted McIlroy, as saying.

"Wayne has shown his ability to play there. It gives him the opportunity to be more involved and influence the way the team plays. He's got the vision, the range of passing and the energy to cover the ground for 90 minutes, just like Bobby."

"He's also got a fantastic shot with his right foot, although Bobby was fantastic with his right and his left! Some people say you'd lose goals from him if he played midfield, but I don't think that's necessarily so," he added.

With Rooney in the team, United have won the Premier League four times, the 2007-08 UEFA Champions League and two League Cups.

He also holds two runner-up medals from both the Premier League and the Champions League.

Earlier, in August, Rooney scored his 150th goal, becoming United's highest goalscorer since the inception of the Premier League.

In 2009-10, Rooney was awarded the PFA Players' Player of the Year and the FWA Footballer of the Year.

He has also won the Premier League 'Goal of the Season' award by the BBC's Match of the Day poll on three occasions.

As of 2011, he is the third highest-paid footballer in the world after Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, with an annual income of 18 million pounds including sponsorship deals. (ANI)