Why Rooney Doesn't Fit Arsenal's DNA, But Higuain Would Be Perfect

With Arsenal heavily linked to the Argentine forward it's time to say goodbye to the Rooney to Arsenal rumours...

Wayne Rooney in an interview a few years ago was quoted as saying, “I’ve said it before, I’m a good enough footballer to play anywhere on the pitch. That’s not being big headed. I feel I’m capable of doing that”.
The fact he can play as a “false nine”, out wide on the right (or left) through the middle or even as a creative midfielder makes him seen by many as the ideal signing for Arsenal.
Yet, even with a war chest of a reported £70 million the trail at Arsenal has gone cold and the signing doesn’t look like it’ll happen. Not by Arsenal at any rate.
I for one am pleased about that.
Don’t get me wrong, if you were talking about the Rooney of a few years ago, the one who thrilled the country through his dynamic introduction at the European Championships of 2004 then I would be dancing in the Holloway Road with the rest of you.
Or the Wayne Rooney who burst through and amazed the Premiership and wider watching world with his all-action fearless style, fearsome technique and unrivalled skill (for an Englishman) I would have loved to have playing at The Arsenal. Throw his verve, flair and audacity into the mix and I would be all for it.
But if you are talking about the Wayne Rooney of 2013 – Rooney 2.0 if you like, then the answer has to be a resounding no.
According to many in the know he has lost his love of the game, he has lost that hunger that made him, according to David Moyes (before he sued him for libel regarding one of his books) one of the last “street footballers”. His performances trailed off last season and his attitude was surly. The fact he practically snubbed Sir Alex Ferguson on the podium when receiving his Premiership winners medal after the Swansea game at Old Trafford said it all.
If he’s prepared to do that, on top of the fact he is a fading force at the top level in England, how can you say that he would improve team spirit at the Gunners when they used every ounce of that elusive state of mind to drag themselves over the line to finish in the top four? The fact they beat an over-confident THFC to fourth place leaving them demoralised and unsure of Bale’s future was a bonus.
The silence emanating from “well-placed sources” on Rooney to Arsenal is also conspicuous by its absence. If by definition a £70 million war chest allows a club to pay £200,000 a week and a £20 million fee (plus a considerable signing on fee) then the lack of chatter either confirming or denying the story is illuminating.
Even dear old Ivan hasn’t said he wants this to happen.