Rooney believes his brace was reminiscent of the kind of performances by United hero Scholes, who scored many of his 155 United goals with well-timed runs from deep.
He scored again against Newcastle, having scored more times against the Magpies than any other club in his career.
Wayne Rooney (talking to the BBC): "It's a role that I've played many times and I know I can play.
"The manager has given me even more licence to get forward and get into the box from that role.
"As Paul (Scholes) did many times over his career, he could see the ball when it was wide and see the space and run into it - I did that today with my two goals.
"It's nice to win, nice to score goals and I'm delighted with the performance."
Man Utd boss Louis Van Gaal (BBC): "When you score two goals and you give the assist to the third goal, then you are happy as the manager. He is very happy also.
"He has the lung capacity to run 90 minutes as a midfielder that's why I used him also like a midfielder.
"I can also use him as a striker. For the team at the moment, it's better he plays in midfield."