James Lawton: Moyes' dilemma: When does care for Rooney become procrastination?

The dilemma which came to Everton's manager David Moyes last week when Wayne Rooney beat Blackburn Rovers more or less on his own has moved from the nagging to the exquisite. The word is that Moyes is still no nearer to deciding whether The Kid starts against Liverpool tomorrow afternoon.

It says still more for the integrity of a man, marked down as special by many sober judges long before he galvanised Goodison Park last spring, that he should be so agonised. Most managers would let the roars and the expectations of the crowd shape their thinking. But already his concern for the proper development of the astonishingly precocious 17-year-old has made him the nearest thing to a Lord Protector since Oliver Cromwell. But when does care become procrastination?

There is no doubt about the decision for which half of Merseyside aches. It is that The Kid should play, as Michael Owen did as a teenager, not just bursting into life at Anfield but launching an assault on a World Cup place which, when eventually conceded by England coach Glen Hoddle, was not so much taken as consumed.

It is ironic that at such a pivotal stage of Rooney's breath-taking march into the consciousness of all of football, Owen, the ageing wunderkind, sits in the dressing room down the corridor tomorrow afternoon. For him there is a touch of déjà vu and, perhaps, a certain pressure not to be completely engulfed by the flooding effect of another local legend. For The Kid there is only the imperative to play and celebrate still further his invasion of a new and thrilling planet.

What can Moyes lose? Interestingly, this appears not to be his first consideration. His priority remains a measured grooming of a player he has already categorised as unique in his physical development and football intelligence. But Moyes is still seething about what thus far is Rooney's only misadventure, that appearance as BBC's Young Sports Personality of the Year, when he was publicly mocked for chewing gum and loosening the knot on his tie.

Moyes is now perhaps a little fearful of Rooney having a bad day at Anfield, which might just represent another blow to confidence which has been skilfully preserved in a series of walk-on roles that have invariably finished up in centre stage.

The easiest – and most compelling – option is to borrow the advice of the Roman general. Seize the day, send in the man-child hero and let destiny take up the slack. If Everton win and if Rooney, who was given a rare starting assignment last Saturday, has a significant role, Moyes is a master of judgement. If Rooney doesn't play, and Everton don't win, might it be said that Moyes sat on his hands and wasted his prime asset?

It is the kind of thing fans do say – no matter how recently they have been pointed towards new horizons undreamed of less than a year ago before Moyes' appointment.

As is so often the case, there are complicating factors as Moyes moves towards the most challenging decision of his brief reign. Not least is the value of the man who might start in Rooney's place – the quick and dangerous Tomasz Radzinski. The Polish-Canadian sat out most of last Saturday's Blackburn game, when Rooney produced his latest spectacular, and his hunger will no doubt be at an optimum level tomorrow.

Though Rooney's impact this season has dominated all else at Goodison, a wider view of the progress under Moyes includes recognition of Radzinski's progress. From the moment he arrived at Everton, he was notable for his speed and his willingness to get into the hurtful positions in the opposing defence. But some witnesses have noted a sharpening of his game, perhaps by as much as half a yard. He has also developed a deeper understanding with his strike partner Kevin Campbell.

So there is another viable scenario for Moyes. With questions being asked, not least by Liverpool's embattled manager Gérard Houllier, about the current security levels of the old rock-like axis of Sami Hyypia and Stéphane Henchoz, why not inject the speed of Radzinski and the nous of Campbell at the start and have Rooney in the wings to be thrown in at the appropriate moment?

It is not exactly a sterile game-plan, even if disgruntled fans might see it more as a retreat from the day's most exciting possibilities. But if Moyes doesn't do cop-out, then nor is he blind to the meaning of Rooney in any match situation.

No doubt there has been more than a touch of hysteria attaching itself to the boy – his BBC award was the prime example – but with every screech of excitement there has also been some solid analysis of Rooney's game.

It is wider and deeper than Owen's but of course it isn't quite as simple as that. Owen has burning speed, a killer instinct and tremendous grooming. The certainties of his own nature have been reinforced by the knowledge and experience of his father, an ex-pro. He was born and educated to be an outstanding footballer. Moyes is having to do a lot of Rooney's education on his feet in the trenches. The Kid is not a research project. He is central to Moyes' success as a manager, and that is something that is shaped today rather than tomorrow.

Some cynics said that Arsène Wenger, who had dreamed, a little unwisely in public, about the possibility of going a season undefeated, was deflecting attention from his team's first defeat of the season when he eulogised Rooney after his match-winning goal against Arsenal. But Wenger was unequivocal. Rooney was the best young English player he had ever seen. He loved his power, his touch and his maturity. Who better to endorse the quality of a young player than the mentor of Henry, Vieira and Pires?

No doubt Moyes has covered all this territory at least a 100 times. But still he sweats it out. To play The Kid – or not to play him. It has been in the gritty air of Liverpool for a week now, and only Moyes can decide. My guess is that he will play him. He will seize the day – and hope to launch an epoch.