Wayne Rooney aimed subtle dig at Pep Guardiola in his final pundit appearance at the Euros (an)

Wayne Rooney aimed subtle dig at Pep Guardiola in his final pundit appearance at the Euros

The Manchester United legend thinks that Pep Guardiola is the blame for a Euro 2024 issue.

Wayne Rooney has blamed Pep Guardiola for one key problem at Euro 2024.

The group stages of the 2024 European Championships finished on Wednesday night after the final Group F match finished with Georgia claiming a 2-0 upset victory over Portugal.

Earlier in the day, Belgium failed to overcome Ukraine as the two sides drew 0-0 as Group E came to a close.

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Incredibly, the result meant that all teams in the group finished on four points, with goals scored and goal difference meaning that Romania topped the group, followed by Belgium, Slovakia and Ukraine, who were eliminated.

But, as he analysed Belgium’s goalless performance, Wayne Rooney thinks that Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is to blame for a change to the way international football is being played.

In his final punditry appearance of Euro 2024, the Manchester United legend told the BBC: “What we’re seeing here, not just with Belgium but with a lot of teams, with England and Holland at times, we’re seeing this system which everyone seems to be playing.

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“Even though with players like Doku who plays out wide, no crosses go into the box.

“I think the game’s got a lot more positional, trying to score the perfect goal.

“I think it’s Pep’s fault! He’s brought that in.

“He’s mastered it but everyone else seems to struggle to create clear-cut chances.”

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Rooney’s jab at Guardiola could explain why several top European nations have struggled for goals at the competition so far.

Both Belgium and France scored just two goals in their three group stage matches, leading to both sides failing to top their groups behind Romania and Austria respectively.

Kylian Mbappe scored his first goal at the European Championships in the 1-1 draw with Poland on Tuesday. (Image: Getty)
Kylian Mbappe scored his first goal at the European Championships in the 1-1 draw with Poland on Tuesday. (Image: Getty)

While England did top Group C, they also failed to score more than two goals in the group stage, with Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane the goalscorers.

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And Rooney believes this is because international managers are trying to replicate the possession-based dominant performances that Guardiola deploys at Manchester City.

In his eight years at the Manchester club, Guardiola has led City to six Premier League titles, a Champions League, two FA Cups and four Carabao Cups.

His success in England follows equally impressive stints in Spain and Germany with Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

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