The Race for Rooney: Where next for Wayne?

A host of sides are taking a keen interest in the England and Manchester United forward, but who will hit the jackpot?

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It’s remarkably quiet at Wayne Rooney Towers at the moment. Rooney has endured an injury-ravaged season, falling down the pecking order at Old Trafford. He doesn’t seem to be part of Jose Mourinho’s plans — even when fit, Rooney has spent long periods languishing this season on the bench. When he has played, he has often let frustration get the better of him, cautioned for dissent more than any other player in the 2016-17 Premier League season.

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So with the signs pointing to a summer exit, let’s look at possible destinations for the mercurial 31-year-old.

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His boyhood love and first club Everton are strong favourites to win the race for Rooney’s signature (8-15 with Marathon). Rooney burst onto the scene with a brilliant goal as a 16-year-old at Goodison Park so the links are understandable.

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With United allegedly taking a strong interest in Romelu Lukaku, the rumour is Rooney could be used as bait to lure the big Belgian to Old Trafford. Everton manager Ronald Koeman is said to be an admirer of Roo too so it all adds up. However, Rooney has been abused beyond belief when starring for United against Everton over the years, so any transfer would depend on how long Wayne’s memory is.

One definite way of improving his current mammoth United salary would be to hop off to China for one last BIG payday. The Chinese Super League seems to be where the money is these days, especially for someone of Rooney’s calibre. With his best days behind him, Rooney may decide to take the money and run (not so fast). He’s 3-1 to sign for any Chinese club with BetVictor.

His good friend Bastian Schweinsteiger has recently jumped the good ship United to join MLS side Chicago Fire, taking a pay big cut along the way. Rooney is 14-1 to join a MLS side, where the Scouser would experience none of the language difficulties he might experience in China.

Heavyweights Chelsea, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Paris Saint Germain all expressed an interest in signing Rooney a few years ago but those days are long gone, as Rooney’s first love Everton looks the most likely destination this summer.