Wayne Rooney is relishing the responsibility that comes with wearing the captain's armband at Manchester United and praised his teammates for responding so well to his leadership.
Rooney's first season as skipper is looking set to end on a high after last week's 4-2 win over Manchester City lifted his third-placed side four points clear of their closest rivals in the Premier League.
But the 29-year-old has been forced to issue a series of impromptu dressing-room speeches in order to maintain the club’s positive momentum.
“There are times when you have to speak up,” Rooney said. “I did that before the Tottenham game because I felt I had to.
“We had had a bad defeat in the FA Cup against Arsenal and I just wanted to reiterate to the players what our targets were for the remaining games of the season.
“The players responded to that and we have had some good results.”
Rooney was installed as captain by new manager Louis van Gaal at the start of the campaign and said he has learned from the big names who have previously worn the armband at Old Trafford, including current assistant manager Ryan Giggs.
“You can obviously look how people have done it before you,” Rooney added.
“Giggsy wasn’t captain here full-time in my time at United but the things he’s done have been a big help and still now. There were also leaders like Roy Keane, Gary Neville and David Beckham. There was Steven Gerrard and John Terry (for England), who were fantastic captains.
“There are different styles and different ways other people have done it. But I have to be my own person and do what I feel is the best way for me to captain the team. That is all I try to do.”
Rooney is set to lead United back to the United States this summer after the club were confirmed among 10 participants in the International Champions Cup.
Exact schedules and dates are yet to be announced but the tournament will take place between July 11 and August 5 – three days before the start of the new Premier League campaign.
It was not immediately evident whether United or fellow participants Chelsea had gained any special dispensation with Van Gaal clearly keen to avoid a repeat of last season’s three-week, five-city campaign.
United won last season’s tournament by beating Liverpool in the final, while their opening match against Real Madrid was played in front of a crowd of over 109,000.
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
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'How To Build A Boat'
Jonathan Gornall, Simon & Schuster
BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
Ruwais timeline
1971 Abu Dhabi National Oil Company established
1980 Ruwais Housing Complex built, located 10 kilometres away from industrial plants
1982 120,000 bpd capacity Ruwais refinery complex officially inaugurated by the founder of the UAE Sheikh Zayed
1984 Second phase of Ruwais Housing Complex built. Today the 7,000-unit complex houses some 24,000 people.
1985 The refinery is expanded with the commissioning of a 27,000 b/d hydro cracker complex
2009 Plans announced to build $1.2 billion fertilizer plant in Ruwais, producing urea
2010 Adnoc awards $10bn contracts for expansion of Ruwais refinery, to double capacity from 415,000 bpd
2014 Ruwais 261-outlet shopping mall opens
2014 Production starts at newly expanded Ruwais refinery, providing jet fuel and diesel and allowing the UAE to be self-sufficient for petrol supplies
2014 Etihad Rail begins transportation of sulphur from Shah and Habshan to Ruwais for export
2017 Aldar Academies to operate Adnoc’s schools including in Ruwais from September. Eight schools operate in total within the housing complex.
2018 Adnoc announces plans to invest $3.1 billion on upgrading its Ruwais refinery
2018 NMC Healthcare selected to manage operations of Ruwais Hospital
2018 Adnoc announces new downstream strategy at event in Abu Dhabi on May 13
Source: The National
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