Everton: And the hits just keep on coming

Everton forward Wayne Rooney was reportedly arrested on Thursday evening, on suspicion of drink driving in Cheshire.

You may remember a scene in the movie A Few Good Men, when Tom Cruise says: “And the hits just keep ooooon coming”, as the bad news keeps piling up. In many ways, this aptly describes how Everton must be feeling right about now.

After a fee worth up to £35 million had been agreed with Chelsea, Ross Barkley made a dramatic about-turn at the last minute, deciding he was going to stay on Merseyside. And the Blues were unable to find the left-sided defender and striker they were looking for, as the clock ticked down towards zero on the summer transfer window.

Now, Everton have received even more bad news. Wayne Rooney has been arrested on suspicion of drink driving.

As per a report from the Mirror‘s Alex Richards, Rooney was pulled over by police close to his home in Cheshire. The incident happened late on Thursday evening.

Richards goes on to write the recently retired England international was on his way home, after a night out in Alderley Edge, at the Bubble Room bar. He posed for photographs with fellow customers and was apparently seen dancing on the tables.

Now, we’re not going to sit here and pass judgement on Rooney’s right to enjoy himself. He had already spent Thursday training at Finch Farm and is entitled to a night out, especially with Everton not playing this weekend.

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Further, who among us hasn’t had a night out and gotten slightly carried away, especially when your wife is on holiday? While 31 might be old in footballing terms, it’s still relatively young in the ‘real’ world.

However, what we’re not going to do is excuse Rooney’s decision to drive home, under the influence of alcohol. It’s not as if he can’t afford to get a taxi back home and return the following day to pick up his car.

The question is, what will Ronald Koeman do, after Rooney’s impressive start to his second spell with the Blues? Everton are not exactly flush with striking options at the moment.

And yet, Koeman is renowned for being a no-nonsense manager. Rooney’s experience will be of vital importance this season and yet, he has to be shown that no one is bigger than the club.

We know Rooney will be fined, but we wait to see if Koeman will take any further action. Suspending him for a game is theoretically the right move, but this will be tough to do, with the next three fixtures seeing the Blues face Spurs and Man Utd, while also playing in Europe.

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Try to think of this from an objective perspective, rather than as an Everton fan. What would you do with Rooney? Is a fine enough — especially with him having a history of similar behaviour — or should he also be suspended for a game? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.