Barely 48 hours after causing heartburn aplenty among his manager, team mates and the club's fans, Wayne Rooney has had a sudden change of heart as he has decided to stay on at Old Trafford. According to reports, Rooney has signed a new five-year contract to stay on at Manchester United at least until June 2015. iSporter Akshay Iyer questions the motives of Wayne Rooney.
Increased wages reason for Rooney's volte-face?
However, sceptics are bound to question if Rooney's change of heart was caused by the enormity of his weekly wages which are rumoured to be in the region of £180,000! This will incidentally make him the best-paid player in the club's history. Whether he deserves to be paid such exorbitant wages is an issue, but what really rankles is did the moolah make Rooney suddenly realise that Manchester United still had a lot to offer to him as a player?
After all, only on Wednesday evening, in fact two hours before Manchester United took on Turkish club Bursaspor in a Champions League group match, Rooney in a statement confirming his decision to leave Old Trafford had stated the current squad's inability and the club's lack of ambition to win trophies as the primary reasons to call time on his United career.
Senior Man United players like Patrice Evra, Nemanja Vidic and Darren Fletcher have been vociferous in countering Rooney's ludicrous claims and had all indicated in one way or another that the striker will have to earn back the trust of his team mates. United manager Sir Alex Ferguson was also equally shocked by Rooney's decision to leave and had said at the time: "I was dumbfounded, I couldn't understand it at all because only months before he'd (Rooney) said he was at the biggest club in the world and he wanted to stay for life. We just don't know what's changed the boy's mind. David (Man United chief executive David Gill was shocked, I was shocked.)"
As could be expected, Ferguson had a major role in convincing Rooney to reconsider his decision as he is reported to have told the striker that leaving Manchester United would be the biggest mistake of his professional life. Rooney has utmost respect for Ferguson and would have been swayed by the manager's coaxing, but I guess the clinching factor was the increased money on offer.
Ferguson has said Rooney has already apologised to Manchester United and his team mates, adding the striker will also say sorry to the fans. Rooney is aware that the fans have turned against him and was quoted by The Guardian as saying: "I'm sure the fans over the last week have felt let down by what they've read and seen. But my position was from concern over the future. The fans have been brilliant with me since I arrived and it's up to me through my performances to win them over again."
Rooney, who is expected to make his next Man United appearance only in mid-November as he is currently suffering from an ankle injury, will also have to win his team mates over. And, he can only do so by putting in the hard yards in training, mentoring the young players and helping Ferguson re-build Man United after the imminent departures of stalwarts like Edwin van der Sar, Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs.
Rooney will also have to rediscover his striking form from the last season and prove to himself, Manchester United, Ferguson, his team mates and the club's supporters that his heart still beats for United.
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a guest
said:
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... I dont agree its about money. Rooney had told Fergie in August that he wants to leave. And United were anyway offering Rooney a massive deal, in Fergie's words "the best possible deal for a player in the country". Dont know what the reason is, but its surely not just money! |
Akshay Iyer
said:
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... @Guest: Money may not have been the only factor, but I reckon the increased weekly wages played a very important part in Rooney's U-turn. If that's not the case, Rooney is exceptionally fickle-minded ..... for barely two days prior to signing the new contract, he had questioned the squad's ability and the club's desire to win trophies. Ferguson's discussions with Rooney would also have played a big role in the striker changing his mind, as would the crowd of 30 fans outside his home baying for his blood! But, for me, money did play a role in Rooney's change of heart. |
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