Sir Alex Ferguson has confirmed that Wayne Rooney wants to
leave Manchester United and won't enter into contract
talks.
The Old Trafford boss insisted he had never fallen out
with the striker and is 'dumbfounded' by the his change of
heart.
And in an extraordinarily frank interview before
Wednesday's Champions League game against Turkish champions
Bursaspor, Ferguson questioned the striker's respect for the
club.
Stunned: Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson
comes clean about his relationship with Wayne Rooney
'I was in the office on August 14 when (United chief
executive David Gill) told me he’d had a call from (Rooney's) agent
saying that Wayne wasn’t going to sign his contract,' said the
Scot.
'So then David came across to see me. He said he couldn’t
believe it and neither could I. I was dumbfounded, I couldn’t
understand it at all because only months before he’d said he was at
the biggest club in the world and he wanted to stay for
life.
Care free: Wayne Rooney trains with United ahead of
the Bursapor match - but finished the session on a
stretcher
'We just don’t know what’s changed the boy’s mind. David
was shocked, I was shocked.
'I had a meeting with the boy and he reiterated what his
agent had said. He wanted to go. I said to him, "Just remember one
thing: respect this club. I don’t want any nonsense from you,
respect your club".
'And I don't know if he's done that. I've got doubts on
that because you read all this about "he's fallen out with me" and
all that nonsense.
'What we’re seeing now in the media is disappointing
because we’ve done everything we can for Wayne Rooney, since the
minute he’s come to the club.
'We’ve always been there as a harbour for him. Any time
he’s been in trouble, the advice we’ve given him – I’ve even been
prepared to give him financial advice, many times.
'But you do that for your players, not just Wayne Rooney.
That’s Manchester United. This is a club which bases all its
history and its tradition on the loyalty and trust between managers
and players and the club.
'That goes back to the days of Sir Matt. That’s what it’s
founded on. Wayne’s been a beneficiary of this help, just as Ryan
Giggs, Paul Scholes and all the players have been. That’s what
we’re there for.'
Ferguson insisted he had never had an argument with his
star striker and insisted that Rooney had suffered an ankle injury
against Rangers in September - despite contradictory comments by
the 24-year-old.
The 68-year-old kept the door open for contract talks to
resume but conceded: 'There’s no offer on the table for Wayne
because they’re not prepared to listen to an offer. But there’s
always an offer there for Manchester United to negotiate with a
player. That’s still there.'
Carefully scripted: Sir Alex Ferguson reads from
notes to deliver his explosive Rooney revelations
Clear signs that all was not well came in explosive
comments from Rooney last week when he claimed he had not been
injured all season - despite Ferguson earlier citing ankle problems
as the reason for the player missing games this season.
Rooney's comments, after playing for England against
Macedonia, not only contradicted his club boss - but also his own
statements shortly after hobbling out of the Champions League game
against Rangers last month.
'He was injured,' said Ferguson. 'We sent him for a scan
and while he was able to train, he was still carrying traces of his
injury.
'He got an ankle injury in the Rangers game. He was seen
clearly hobbling at half-time. He confirmed it himself in an
interview with Sky.
'Why he was saying he wasn’t injured, you can only guess
yourself. It’s disappointing. When it came to the Sunderland game,
I felt I would leave him out and give him a complete break so he
could be fit for England.
'I thought if he went and played for England, at Wembley,
we would get his form back. That was my intention, that was my
idea, to galvanise him. Take a break from the games, get the
training done, get his fitness back. Get rid of the traces of the
ankle injury away and play for England.
'So why he’s come out and said that, I’ve no
idea.'
'We’ve never had any argument, not a bit. I think you have
to understand the mechanics of these situations when people want to
leave the club.'
And it seems the injury has not gone away. Rooney looked relaxed
in training today - laughing and joking with team-mates - but he
ended the session on a stretcher and will not play against
Bursaspor because of an ankle injury.
Rooney will seek a monster pay day if he moves elsewhere,
but Ferguson has rejected the idea that United can't compete
financially with the likes of Real Madrid or Manchester
City.
'I had a meeting with him, and he intimated to me, in his
own way, that he wanted to leave,' explained Rooney. 'I did say to
him, as David Gill intimated, that there was an offer there if he
was prepared to accept it. It was an offer that never got to any
financial discussions.
'I know that David was prepared to offer him a contract
that would be difficult to better elsewhere.
'That is what you do with top players. There is no big
problem with that. We have been doing this kind of thing for quite
a while now.
'Contract issues, over the last 10 years, have accelerated
to a degree where they are quite phenomenal.'