Rooney wants to manage Man Utd one day
Martin Macdonald
- 10 Feb 2022 10:47 GMT
- 3 min read
Wayne Rooney says he would love to become Manchester United or Everton manager one day.
The former England international is currently doing a fine job at Derby County as he desperately attempts to guide the club free of relegation from the Championship despite a major points deduction earlier in the campaign.
When Rafa Benitez was sacked as Everton manager a few weeks ago, Rooney's name was mentioned as a potential candidate and the Toffees allegedly approached him to interview for the job at Goodison Park.
He would ultimately turn down his former side though, while pledging his loyalty to Derby for the moment.
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Rooney would like to manage one of his former clubs, Everton or Man Utd, in the future, however.
“I’ve stood in front of my players and told them: ‘I’m with you, trust me, I’m fighting with you’... what type of person would I be if, at the first opportunity, I left them?" he said at the premier of his new Amazon Prime documentary series, 'Rooney'.
“True to my word, I am fighting for the club. I am trying to get us out.
“And then Everton, Manchester United – two clubs close to my heart. Of course, one day I’d love to manage either of them clubs.”
Rooney urges Man Utd to give manager's time
At the moment, Man Utd are going through another tough campaign, having sacked Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and replaced him with Ralf Rangnick.
The club face a major battle to qualify for the Champions League, a tournament they have not made an impact on in a decade.
Rangnick is only in a caretaker role for the moment, with a new manager set to be appointed in the summer, and Rooney believes that whoever comes in must be given time by the club.
“I obviously haven’t seen the game last night – we [Derby] were playing – but I’ve seen the result and I think they’re going through a tough period,” he said after Man Utd drew 1-1 at Burnley.
“And you can see a few things off the pitch. It’s a tough one. I think it’s been going on for a while, if I’m being honest. These are things I brought up in 2010.
“They’ve tried everything. They’ve tried very experienced managers in Louis van Gaal. They’ve tried Jose Mourinho, David Moyes, Ole [Gunnar Solskjaer] – one of their own – and now they’ve tried more of the ‘professor’ type in the new manager.
“I really think they need to bring someone in and give them time. Give them the opportunity to build the squad, let them compete and get back to the levels we all think they should be at.”
