Rooney paying no attention to plaudits
Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney says he is paying no attention to the plaudits following his two-goal haul in the Red Devils' Champions League win against AC Milan.
The 24-year-old took his 2009/10 goal tally to 26 - his best in a single season - with a brace against the Rossoneri at the San Siro, leading to reports in both England and Italy hailing him as one of the best players in the world.
The Italian press labelled the England forward as "irreplaceable," "simply extraordinary," and "like a wolf stalking its prey," as Rooney's second-half headed goals put the Red Devils in pole position to reach the quarter-finals.
NEWS: Italian press purr over red-hot Rooney
However, the in-form forward insisted that he would not be letting the rave reviews get to his head.
"If people are saying nice things about me that is good but I am not really listening too much," he said.
"I am not really focusing on that side of things. I know what I need to keep doing. I just want to keep playing well."
Rooney will receive no such love at Goodison Park on Saturday, as he returns to former club Everton hoping to fire United back to the top of the Premier League.
Get FourFourTwo Newsletter
The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.
NEWS: Rooney adulation to end at Everton
And having already scored 26 in all competitions this season, the sky's the limit regarding how many more goals he can score between now and the World Cup.
"I don't know how far I can go with my scoring total this season. I am delighted to have scored two goals in such a big game [in Milan], two headers as well. Hopefully I can keep it up.
"I have been working a lot on getting into the box a lot more, especially inside the six-yard box.
"That is helping me to score goals, which gives me more confidence.
WIN: Tickets for Manchester United vs AC Milan
Gregg Davies is the Chief Sub Editor of FourFourTwo magazine, joining the team in January 2008 and spending seven years working on the website. He supports non-league behemoths Hereford and commentates on Bulls matches for Radio Hereford FC. His passions include chocolate hobnobs and attempting to shoehorn Ronnie Radford into any office conversation.