Wayne Rooney has revealed the three midfield players he studied when he transitioned into a deeper role.
As he has got older, Manchester United and England's record goalscorer isn't the electric No.9 he was in his younger days, so dropped back into a midfield position, much like several other high-profile players have done in the past.
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It started at Manchester United and has continued in his second spell at boyhood club Everton, where Rooney has scored 10 Premier League goals.
While one would think Rooney has the attributes to play a midfield role with relative ease, he needed to analyse three of the very best in the business.
In an interview with fellow scouser Jamie Carragher, following on from their banterous episode of Monday Night football, he says Paul Scholes, Toni Kroos and Xabi Alonso were the three players he watched closely to learn the tricks of the trade.
"I always knew at the back end of my career I would drop back into midfield," he told The Telegraph.
"I started watching Paul Scholes closely in training. Analysed Xabi Alonso and Toni Kroos. They don't go around sprinting the whole game, getting in peoples' faces.
"They are players who control a tempo of a game. I knew I could go into that role and I believed in my own ability to do it. I still feel I have more to give if playing that right way.
"Playing deeper suits me. I can get on the ball a bit more and have lads around me with more legs. I am the one who can get us playing and moving the ball."
Rooney still has plenty left in the tank in his career but did also admit he is already thinking about his next step - admitting his desire to go into coaching and one day be in the Goodison Park hotseat. He plans to get involved in the Toffees youth set-up.
"I would love to stay at Everton in a coaching role or hopefully manager one day," he added.
"It is something I want to do - to stay involved, but if that is not possible I will look to see where the opportunities are for me. I am determined to become a manager."
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