Rooney is fearful of going with a whimper
WAYNE ROONEY is growing increasingly frustrated with his bit- part role at Manchester United and fears that his Old Trafford career is fizzling out.
Rooney has already confirmed to team-mates that he will leave United this summer, but was hoping to end his 13-year association with the club on a high.
The England striker has missed the last two games with a double ankle injury that is expected to rule him out of tomorrow night’s Europa League quarter-final first leg against Anderlecht in Belgium.
It is the latest in a variety of issues with injury and illness that have sidelined the 31- year- old since he became United’s record scorer in January, when he claimed his 250th goal for the club with a stoppage-time leveller at Stoke.
However, it is understood that Rooney would have been willing to play through some of the problems if manager Jose Mourinho had given him the opportunity.
Rooney has played just 131 minutes in the Premier League since the Stoke game. He has not appeared in the Europa League since United’s final group game at Zorya Luhansk in December, and was an unused substitute when Mourinho’s side won the EFL Cup at Wembley in February.
Last month, he was left out of England’s games against Germany and Lithuania due to a lack of playing time after his former United team-mate Paul Scholes told Sportsmail that Rooney’s reduced role at Old Trafford would be ‘driving him up the wall’.
It is believed that his agent Paul Stretford has continued to explore the possibility of a move to the Chinese Super League since flying to Beijing before the transfer window closed there in February, and that remains Rooney’s most lucrative option. Although Everton maintain an interest in taking him back to Goodison Park, Rooney would have to accept a pay-cut of at least £100,000 a week.
Major League Soccer is another possibility but finding a club in the US and a package that would suit the player and his family could be a problem.
Rooney will play his last game in a United shirt in Michael Carrick’s testimonial in June, but how many more appearances he makes for the club before then remains to be seen. Even if United reach the Europa League final in Stockholm on May 24, there are no guarantees their captain will be in the squad.
As Mourinho and his players prepare to fly out to Brussels today for the first leg against Anderlecht, defender Luke Shaw admits that the competition is more important than finishing in the top four of the Premier League.
‘The Europa League is a massive thing for us now,’ said Shaw. ‘It’s a trophy and it gives us qualification for the Champions League. I think we have to look at that as the priority. We have to treat every game in that like it’s a final. With the players we’ve got, we can be unstoppable.’
Shaw says he has heeded Mourinho’s advice following clear-theair talks last week, and is desperate to play a part in the rest of United’s European campaign.
He added: ‘ I took what the manager said on board and I will work hard until the end. I want to be at this place. I am trying to impress the manager because these are the big games.’