Tonight the Belgian bruiser is set to start as Manchester United look to ensure Champions League qualification after beating Club Brugge 3-1 last week at Old Trafford.
And after manager Louis Van Gaal confirmed that the former Everton midfielder is set to be given an advanced role this season following the signings of a number of defensive midfielders in Morgan Schneiderlin and Bastian Schweinsteiger, Fellaini himself admitted that he is enjoying the new role.
“In the past, I have played no.9 and no.10. I have to help the team – I can play there. It’s not important where I play. The most important thing is to win the game, of course. I enjoy all the different positions I can play in. ”
The continued speculation linking the club with a new attacker has seen the likes of Edinson Cavani, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Gareth Bale and Neymar all being mooted with a move to Old Trafford however it seems that the answer to the much-discussed question as to who will support Rooney this year has been found much closer to home.
Fans and reporters around the world have made their opinions very clear in that the current attacking lineup at Van Gaal’s disposal is not able to fire the side to the title as many doubt the quality of Javier Hernandez whilst 19-year-old James Wilson is far too young and inexperienced despite the clear evidence of his potential after scoring three times in 14 appearances last year.
And since his move to Manchester United on deadline day in 2013 under David Moyes the Belgian international has proved his worth to the side with a number of impressive attacking displays last year after a disappointing first year where he struggled to play as a defensive midfielder.
During his five-year spell at Everton Fellaini also managed to score 25 goals in 141 appearances and was regularly employed as a striker or in an advanced role as he regularly linked up with former Evertonian Tim Cahill who caused a number of problems with their aerial play.
Although the Belgian joined a number of years following Rooney’s record departure to Manchester United in 2004 the pair seem to have discovered a natural partnership that saw the likes of Chelsea, Tottenham and Crystal Palace succumb to Fellaini’s forceful play.
One aspect that could be attributed to the quality of Fellaini’s attacking prowess despite the Belgian naturally seeing himself as a defensive player could be the presence of Everton legend Duncan Ferguson in a coaching capacity whilst he was at Everton.
During Rooney’s impressive breakthrough in the first team at Everton the England captain managed to form an impressive partnership with the Scottish striker, whilst Ferguson praised his former strike partner for returning to play in his testimonial last month.
And it could be the words of wisdom of the former Everton legend that could see the Fellaini/Rooney partnership come to fruition this year and help Rooney return to the type of form that has seen Wayne Rooney be considered one of the country’s finest talents following his tough start to the season.
