Tuesday, 30th September, 2014
Phil Neville believes Wayne Rooney is the only leader in the Manchester United dressing room at present.
Rooney, who was named club captain by manager Louis van Gaal in the summer, was sent off at the weekend for a reckless challenge on West Ham winger Stewart Downing and will now serve a three-match ban.
Van Gaal has admitted Manchester United will miss Rooney while he is serving his suspension and Neville believes the striker is the only true leader the Red Devils have left.
"I think the biggest thing for Wayne Rooney now is that he's got a lot of responsibility on his shoulders", Neville, a former Manchester United first team coach, told BBC Radio 5 live, reflecting on Rooney's sending off.
"I think he's the only leader in this Manchester United team at the moment", he continued.
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"He is someone that will go into that dressing room and single people out.
"I look back at the Leicester game last weekend; he would have been in that dressing room in people's faces and I don't see many others in that dressing room doing something like that."
And Neville can see no alternative to Rooney as Manchester United captain, or even on the international stage, where he captains England.
"He'll be the one that will set the tempo in the game, take the ball under pressure.
"He'll be the one that will come out and do the press when they've lost the game.
"And that's why I think he's the only candidate to be captain of both England and Man United."
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