One for the Everyman: Wayne Rooney's Premier League

Savagery and grace

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On February 11, 2011, I sat on my couch, mouth agape, having just watched Wayne Rooney write his name in the book of sports legend. Nani had sent in a lofted cross and Rooney, then twenty-five years old, performed the greatest bicycle kick in soccer history.

I was a high school freshman who rarely watched Premier League games, but this particular weekend, I’d tuned in for the Manchester Derby. A latecomer to soccer, I’d grown up watching basketball and college football religiously. But I’d started playing soccer seriously in sixth grade, and something about it felt right. I watched hours of “Joga Bonito” videos on YouTube, including the three-part series where they make Rooney do all kinds of whacky accuracy challenges. The first soccer competition I really followed was the 2010 World Cup—I was sold on the incredible Nike ad that featured greats like Ronaldinho, Rooney, Ribery, and Ronaldo: the R-Beginning Last-Named Legends. By the time I hit freshman year, I was in love with it all. With this goal, Rooney changed that flirtation into a lifelong romance.