Amorim turns the Manchester United star into the new Rooney and he is not Cisco

Upon his £30m transfer in the summer of 2004, no Manchester United The supporter could have imagined the enormous impact Wayne Rooney It will be on the club.

The Englishman spent 13 years at Old Trafford, making 559 appearances – and is currently among the club’s most-appearing players of all time.

This time frame allowed the striker to reach incredible levels with the Red Devils, scoring a total of 253 goals at a rate of one strike every 2.2 games.

Rooney’s subsequent tally made him the record goalscorer, a record that still stands to this day and puts him ahead of the legendary Sir Bobby Charlton.

His phenomenal numbers jumped Sir Alex Ferguson’s team to five Premier League titles during his time at the North West, helping to make the club one of the most successful in English history.

Fast forward to present day, current president Reuben Amorim He’s found his own version of the fan-favorite game, but it’s not in the single-player format that many expect.

Benjamin Sisko’s early career at United

After scoring just 44 goals in the Premier League last season, it was important for United to invest in a new talisman – with… Benjamin Sisco The man chosen by the hierarchy to lead the class.

The Slovenian cost £74m including add-ons from Bundesliga side RB Leipzig, but it’s safe to say his start in England was slow and took time to explode into life.

He has failed to score in any of his first six appearances for the Red Devils, but the 22-year-old has managed to produce the goods in each of the last few games.

Sisko has scored in each of his last two Premier League matches for the Amorim side, with his latest goal helping them secure a much-needed win against newly promoted Sunderland at the Theater of Dreams.

It may be the early days of his England career, but he’s already shown glimpses of the quality that could make him a fan favorite for many years to come – and perhaps catapult them to new levels of success.

However, he is not a player who can emulate Rooney at Old Trafford, with another member of the first team more likely to resemble the Englishman in the future.

New Rooney for Manchester United

In their bid to land top-level talent, United have spent more than £800m on new signings in the past four years to try and push themselves back up the Premier League table.

Most of this money has been wasted on players who, unfortunately, are not at the level required to succeed, as we saw last season in which the club finished 15th.

Amorim was unable to extract the most from the squad, which no doubt led to the addition of Cisco over the summer to prevent such a scenario from happening again in the future.

However, he had already appeared next to him Bruno Fernandeswith the Portuguese international a player who has impressed hugely despite difficulties on the pitch in 2024/25.

The 31-year-old has scored 19 goals and provided 18 assists in all competitions, the highest ever tally for any first-team player.

These numbers make him similar to Rooney in terms of being the Red Devils’ main talisman, but it is another aspect of his game that has him emulating the Englishman.

A £200m spending spree in the summer saw three attack-minded players join the club, with Bruno having to change roles as a result.

Fernandez, who was rated as “World class“By Writer Liam Canning Rooney has since been forced to operate in a deeper midfield role, which Rooney did during the latter stages of his Old Trafford career.

While this decision has resulted in the Englishman scoring fewer goals in his later years, his passing ability has made him an exceptional option in the field – with Bruno emulating such levels, as evidenced by his tally of 82% of completed passes in 2025/26.

The Portugal international may struggle in terms of his goals, but his ability to dictate play could be a huge asset to the Amorim side in the coming years.

His passing ability could be crucial for Cisco if the Slovenian is to find success at Old Trafford, with huge pressure on the youngster to deliver the goods in the Premier League.

However, neither player is likely to reach Rooney’s hero status at the Theater of Dreams, with the manager no doubt wishing to be able to call up such a player in the present day.