When Manchester United kicked off their 2010 Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich in Germany, Rooney was in the form of his life and looked set to be England's key World Cup weapon three months later in June.
However, ligament damage he sustained in the dying moments in Munich - and the ill-advised attempt to strap him up and rush him back for the home leg - proved the catalyst for the worst 12 months of his professional and personal life.
Rooney's goal after two minutes in Munich was his 35th of the season yet it proved to be his last of the campaign and he did not score in open play again for United until this January.
"I don't think it's necessarily about injury now, so much," former England manager Graham Taylor told Reuters in a break from the Soccerex forum in Manchester on Thursday.
"I still don't think he has returned to the form we're all aware of. The one thing that would worry me, he came on to the scene so young - at 16 - how much more do we expect him to improve? Perhaps we've seen the best.
"Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying his career's over or anything but somehow we're expecting more and more from a boy we've watched since he was 16 and his improvement has been fantastic," added Taylor.
"He's not playing as well as we know he's capable of playing but he is better than some three months ago. Let's hope it's a gradual thing for him and let's hope he does come back to his very best form. It would be an attribute to both his club and country."
Rooney has regularly maintained he is "getting back to his best" while Ferguson, unsurprisingly, has maintained a strong public defence.
