Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint Germain are considering making a move for Wayne Rooney this summer.
Should the appointment of Louis van Gaal as new manager go ahead this week, then the future of the England international could be in doubt as there are already rumours that Rooney is worried about his future under the Dutchman.
If van Gaal is appointed then Robin van Persie, who was tipped to be leaving at the end of the season, may be persuaded to stay.
Van Persie will lead the attack for Holland in which van Gaal is currently the manager and will guide his country to the World Cup in Brazil and we could see van Persie not only starting more but potentially given the captaincy for Manchester United next season.
And with other forwards on United’s radar, Rooney is likely to be featured less in the starting line-up and will and this may help other sides sign him.
Any move will be tough for Rooney just months after signing a new deal committing his future to the club and giving him £300,000 a week.
On the other hand, the deal means for United that they can return a decent amount in transfer funds. In fact if he had not signed the deal then his fee would have slid below £10m this summer given that the England foward only has one year left on his contract.
United can now ask around £35m for Rooney this summer, a price PSG wouldn’t be deterred by.
Chelsea are unlikely to still be interested in signing Rooney as they now persue Diego Costa and no other English club will want to meet the hefty transfer fee and wage demands. The Ligue 1 champions would be happy to despite facing sactions from UEFA through Financial Fair Play problems.
PSG were ready to make a bid for Rooney in January but in the end United decided to meet his demands and he was persuaded to stay.
The 25 year-old will not want to leave the Premier League but a move to the French capital may prove to be his only option if he is not in van Gaal’s plans for next season.
In the meantime, Rooney is battling injury to be fit for the World Cup in June.
There are fears that a groin injury. from which he has suffered for a couple of months could prove to be a hernia problem which would require surgery, something England fans wouldn’t want to hear.
By Phil Wellbrook
