Did Wayne Rooney ask to leave Manchester United last season? Depends who is answering the question. The England international suddenly doesn’t want to leave, but also doesn’t want to find himself in a situation in which he faces fan backlash.
Rooney was booed by some when he accepted the Premier League winners’ medal two months ago, when his transfer request business were made public. It hasn’t been the first time in which his exit from Manchester United seemed imminent, but once again, this time felt like the real one.
With Rooney set to meet David Moyes, things have changed. He wants to stay, but that’s not it. He wants the club to announce that Alex Ferguson’s claim from last season about the transfer request isn’t true, although Ferguson’s assistant, Mike Phelan, has spoken about the matter, saying that Rooney’s has asked to leave United twice: Once in 2010, which ended up in him signing a new contract, and once again before the penultimate match.
Maybe it’s all about the manager. Rooney didn’t like the last season under Ferguson, playing him more than once in the middle of the pitch, questioning his fitness publicly and leaving him out of the lineup at questionable times, like in the second leg of the Real Madrid clash.
Under Moyes, sources suggest Rooney would be happy to be a part of a three-man frontline or be the attacking midfielder in a midfield trio. Nothing is set in stone, but David Moyes would love to retain Rooney with as little fuss as possible, and will probably try and push things in his favor with the board, hoping that Alex Ferguson’s presence doesn’t stop the team from announcing Rooney never wanted to leave.
However, fans aren’t stupid, and make up their minds regardless of everything the club or managers say. If they think Rooney doesn’t have his whole heart with the club and is simply settling until a better opportunity comes along, they’ll let him know.