WE WANT ROO

Everton move in on Wayne with Koeman charm offensive

EVERTON have ramped up their attempts to bring Wayne Rooney back to Goodison Park.

The Manchester United captain last week attempted to end speculation about his future by saying that he was staying at Old Trafford.

However, Everton manager Ronald Koeman has been monitoring Rooney’s situation and for the third time since October has chosen to praise the England international — who has never hidden his affinity for his boyhood club.

Koeman said last week it would be a waste if Rooney accepted an offer to play in China and he has stepped up his charm offensive by insisting the 31-year-old would improve Everton’s team.

‘Wayne Rooney is still playing at a high level,’ Koeman said. ‘He made a good choice to stay at Manchester United and in the Premier League because he has still two or three years in front of him to play on a high level.

‘What will happen at the end of the season? I don’t know but he is one of the players who can make Everton more stronger.

‘It’s all about what the player likes, what United need to do, and we are not involved in that project. But every player that we at Everton think can make the

side stronger is welcome at Everton.’ There has long been a romantic idea that Rooney would return to the club that launched him on the path to stardom but the economics of any deal would have to make sense. Everton may have a new benefactor in Iranian billionaire Farhad Moshiri but Rooney still commands a huge wage. At United his contract is worth in excess of £230,000 per week and Everton have yet to rubber-stamp the deal that will make striker Romelu Lukaku the first player in their history to command a wage of more than £100,000 per week. It is clear, though, that they will pursue Rooney in the summer and Steve Walsh, Everton’s director of football, backed up Koeman. ‘Wayne is one of the greatest players that has ever played the game in England and for us not to be interested would be wrong,’ Walsh told Sky Sports. ‘He started his career here and if the opportunity arose that he could come back and it sat well with everyone it is something we would consider. ‘He is a class apart, he sees things, and all the things that have been said about Wayne are true. ‘He comes into that category of being one of England’s greatest ever players, so why wouldn’t we be interested? The whole thing would be euphoric. We could sell a lot of shirts! ‘But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Let’s wait and see what happens.’ Walsh believes with a signing like Rooney Everton can become contenders for Champions League qualification. He added: ‘We want to be successful and we want to get better and we will get better. We want to get into the top four and given time, we are going to get there.’