Jamie O’Hara disputed Wayne Rooney’s surprise statement that he would celebrate if he scored for Derby against Manchester United on Thursday night.
Rooney, the Red Devils’ top scorer of all time, will face his former team in the fifth round of the FA Cup as his new club Derby welcome the giants of the Premier League to Pride Park – with the full commentary of the match live on talkSPORT!
When asked if he was going to celebrate if he scored against United, the 34-year-old told talkSPORT: “Of course, I’m a player from County Derby.
“I know this game means a lot to the fans, to the players, to the staff here, and of course I’m going to celebrate.”
Footballers have taken different approaches to scoring against their old clubs over the years and this is a subject of constant debate.
At one end of the spectrum, who could forget Emmanuel Adebayor’s famous 100-meter scoreboard and his power slide in front of Arsenal fans in 2009 when he scored for Man City against the Gunners.
Then you have the non-celebration of Frank Lampard against Chelsea in 2014, when he seemed almost upset to score against his beloved Blues.
And O’Hara suggests that Rooney would be wrong to celebrate, saying that the legend of Man United would risk disrespecting his former club.
“I think it’s fair enough to say that he wants Derby to win, but I don’t think he should celebrate if he scores,” said former Tottenham midfielder at Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast. .
“For Rooney, he is a legend at Manchester United. He scored a lot of goals for them and gave them fantastic memories.
“So I think it’s just a matter of respect.”
You can listen to the full Derby vs Man United commentary in the FA Cup fifth round live on talkSPORT, kicking off at 7:45 p.m.