Wayne Rooney has raised plenty of eyebrows this week by naming his three best Premier League players of the season so far. The former Manchester United striker has been trying his hand at punditry ever since his managerial career struggled to take off - his last two positions ending after just 15 matches and 25 matches at Birmingham City and Plymouth Argyle, respectively.
Needless to say, his work in the media hasn’t exactly been a roaring success either. Just this month, he was left red-faced by Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk, who challenged one of his comments on live TV, leaving the 40-year-old stumbling over his words. And now, he has put himself back in the firing line with his thoughts on the best performers of the 2025/26 Premier League season so far.
Erling Haaland, who has 14 goals in 11 games, is the most notable omission. Meanwhile, despite Arsenal sitting top of the league, Rooney chose a rather surprising Gunners player - snubbing the likes of Declan Rice, Gabriel, and Bukayo Saka.
Rooney Names 3 Best Premier League Players of the Season So Far
Wayne Rooney
Some football fans online have been asking whether Rooney has been watching much Premier League football this season after naming his three picks for the best-performing players so far.
While Bryan Mbeumo has been Man United’s saving grace in recent weeks, and Antoine Semenyo’s tally of six goals and three assists in eleven games makes him an easy choice, few would have expected Viktor Gyokeres to be included alongside them. Speaking to Amazon Prime, he said (watch the full segment below):
"Top three: probably [Antoine] Semenyo, he's been brilliant for Bournemouth, carrying on his form from last season. I'd also put Bryan Mbeumo in there, I think he's been really good for Man United, even after a poor start to the season for the club.
"Third one, I'd probably go [Viktor] Gyokeres, I think. Arsenal have been crying out for a number nine for a few years now, and he's come in, his work rate, his determination, his hold-up play, and he's been scoring a few goals as well."
The main reason Arsenal spent £56 million on Gyokeres over the summer was to reduce the attacking burden on Kai Havertz, and provide an alternative and more traditional striker to lead the line. Four goals in 10 Premier League games is hardly the return he promised after managing 97 in 102 appearances for Sporting, having won the Gerd Muller trophy at this year's Ballon d'Or ceremony.
Naturally, getting selected ahead of Haaland boiled the brains of social media users, as one X user remarked: "Gyokeres? No wonder he failed as a manager," while a second added: "So the guy that has more goals than games is not top three? But Gyokeres, who has been constantly underwhelming, is. Sure! Makes sense!"
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While a third wrote: "I don't know why legends just want to appear clever. Rooney, it's Haaland - yes, I know he reps City, but Haaland. Him number one, then the rest we can debate," a fourth questioned: "Surely this isn't a real quote?", as a fifth concluded: This is a wind-up, right?"
Rooney, who scored 208 goals in 491 Premier League appearances at his peak, will know better than anyone that determination and work rate can only take a striker so far. If the Sweden international doesn’t start finding the back of the net with devastating effect, the Gunners’ hierarchy will surely feel as though they signed the wrong man - especially given that they already have enough creative players in their ranks to ensure their talisman is constantly served the ball on a silver platter.