Shrek crosses his gaffer!

[boltonboris]

Should be fun!!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/footbal ... 090179.stm

Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney has contradicted club manager Sir Alex Ferguson by claiming he has not had an ankle injury this season.

Ferguson took Rooney off during last month's 2-2 draw at Bolton and left him out of games at Valencia and Sunderland citing an injury to the 24-year-old.

However, Rooney played in England's 0-0 draw against Montenegro on Tuesday.

"No, I've had no ankle problem all season," said Rooney when asked about his problems on the fitness front.

He was then asked as to why Ferguson had said he had an injury, Rooney replied: "I don't know."

Rooney has struggled for form this season and has scored just one penalty in five games for United.

He was left out of the 3-3 draw at Everton on 11 September following allegations about his private life, with Ferguson not wanting to subject Rooney to an expected hostile crowd at his former club.

Ferguson later claimed Rooney was feeling the pressure of the media scrutiny he was under before substituting him at Bolton and leaving him out of the Champions League group win at Valencia and goalless draw at Sunderland.

Ahead of the Black Cats game, Ferguson said: "I have to take the view that this injury has been niggling away for a while and he kept on playing.

"I have to be dead sure that I am doing the right thing because Wayne has not been doing himself justice. I think in a week he will be fine."

Rooney came into this season on the back of a poor World Cup in South Africa with the cause believed to be a lack of fitness because of an ankle injury suffered in a Champions League match against Bayern Munich in March.

But Rooney said: "Towards the end of last season I was injured but during the World Cup, I trained every session and had no problems fitness-wise.

I'll keep doing my training and I'm sure the goals will come

Wayne Rooney
"I think in this league you need to keep playing because, if you are not at full fitness, then it's difficult to break teams down."

He added: "When you are going through the run I am now, you just have to keep working hard.

"I know I've been through this before and once one goal goes in, I am sure I will get more but it's just getting that goal.

"If you don't score, and you have chances, you are disappointed. I want to score but I have got a lot of games left in the season. I am sure this run without scoring will end soon.

"I don't do anything different. I train as hard as I can every time I train and I do extra training every day and I've done that since I was a young boy.

"I'll keep doing my training and I'm sure the goals will come.

"I've missed a few games this season. I've played six or seven games this season including England.

"You just want to keep playing consistently now and keep working hard and I'm sure the goals will come."

[bobo the clown]

mmmmm. Saw this and thought exactly the same.

WE all knew that Satan was spouting bllx about the injury .... Rooney abviously did as well ... but to say so in this way will not have gone down well. It was clearly said as a cover story & was far better than saying "yeah ... to be honest, since all these stories about shagging whores has come out then him & Colleen have been having problems and his minds not been on the game at all & his form's been shite so I've dropped him."

You'd think Rooney would appreciate this. It seems he doesn't. AF will not be a happy man.

[General Mannerheim]

i think if he keeps doing the training the goals will come.

[Gravedigger]

Surprised it's an ankle injury and not a groin strain.

[Verbal]

oh dear

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010 ... ter-united

Wayne Rooney has thrown Manchester United's season into a state of turmoil after informing the club he has no plans to sign another contract and intends to find new employers. Rooney's decision is based on serious differences with Sir Alex Ferguson, the Guardian understands, and will be a devastating blow to the supporters who have come to regard him as a talismanic figure in this troubled era under Malcolm Glazer's ownership.

United may have no option now but to sell the England striker, possibly in the January transfer window, rather than risk his transfer valuation dramatically lowering now that he is only 20 months away from becoming a free agent.

Rooney has always said he has no desire to play abroad and would like to remain in Manchester for the rest of his career, but his mindset has changed and his availability will inevitably attract interest from major forces such as Real Madrid and Barcelona. Manchester City may feel they have an outside chance of capitalising on what has gone wrong for him at Old Trafford, although their chances are undermined by the fact they already have a huge task ahead of them bringing down their wages to prevent Uefa banning them from European competitions under financial fair-play rules.

The full details are not yet clear but the underlying fact is that Rooney now feels that his working relationship with Ferguson has suffered potentially irreparable damage in the fall-out from tabloid allegations about the striker's private life, coinciding with a dramatic loss of form and a growing sense that the most successful manager in the business has taken a hard-line approach with his player.

Rooney has lost his place in the team, with Ferguson citing a supposed ankle injury, and the 24-year-old felt sufficiently emboldened last week to contradict his manager's version of events and make it clear he has not missed a single training session – and was, in essence, dropped for other reasons.

What has not been established is whether these events have coincided with a disagreement about the amount of money he expected to earn in a new contract. United had been willing to make him the highest earner at the club, with a weekly salary of £150,000, and the club's chief executive, David Gill, had stated several times earlier in the year that the matter would be resolved as soon as Rooney was back from the World Cup.

That now appears to have backfired on Gill, with the message already conveyed to senior figures at Old Trafford that Rooney is now counting down his days at the club. There remains a suspicion it might be a part of the negotiating process, but the Guardian has been informed that, for now at least, Rooney's mind is made up and that he and his family are already contemplating where next to take his career.

If that remains the case, it threatens to be an even more devastating blow to the club than Cristiano Ronaldo's £80m transfer to Real Madrid last year given that it was widely known the Portuguese would eventually move to the Bernabéu. Rooney has always given the opposite impression, immersing himself in the fabric of the club, and now appears to be on the brink of being one of the few players to leave against their wishes. Ferguson has moved on some great footballers, including Ruud van Nistelrooy and David Beckham, but always prides himself on players not being sold unless he says so; in this case it seems clear that the decision was made by Rooney first.

With United desperately trying to keep the matter in-house, Ferguson's views on the subject are not clear, other than he is known to be alarmed and angry about the headlines that Rooney has attracted because of his alleged relationship with a prostitute, Jennifer Thompson and mostly his faltering performances on the pitch. Some United fans will be angry that Rooney seems to have portrayed himself as the victim when it could be argued that he has brought these troubles on himself, but a rift has clearly developed between player and manager.

Rooney has been in the worst form of his professional life for the last seven months, without a goal in open play since the first leg of the Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich in March. Most worryingly, he is showing few signs of emerging from his current slump. Nonetheless, he remains a hero to the United support and was regarded as the player who would help to ensure continuity and success once Ferguson, plus the likes of Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes, had retired.

[Lord Kangana]

Forget all that, what are these rules that City must abide by? Was that a suggestion of a salary cap???

[FaninOz]

Alex will be happy to see him go, providing the club gets a good fee. Its Beckham, Ronaldo, Stam, etc, etc, all over again. The Club is much bigger than any one player or in United's case players, and Alex takes no sh*t from any of them even when he's wrong.

The way Rooney is playing United will be better off with the 80 mil they may get than with Rooney still playing for them in his current form, and when we take his England form into account as well the Rooney bubble is well and truely burst. He looks unfit, overweight, injury prone, bigheaded, sulking and disinterested, and for me he is unlikely to recover his earlier form.

[BWFC_Insane]

Alex will be happy to see him go, providing the club gets a good fee. Its Beckham, Ronaldo, Stam, etc, etc, all over again. The Club is much bigger than any one player or in United's case players, and Alex takes no sh*t from any of them even when he's wrong.

The way Rooney is playing United will be better off with the 80 mil they may get than with Rooney still playing for them in his current form, and when we take his England form into account as well the Rooney bubble is well and truely burst. He looks unfit, overweight, injury prone, bigheaded, sulking and disinterested, and for me he is unlikely to recover his earlier form.

Except....they are in huge debt and its very likely any money they get for Rooney will be swallowed up rather than re-invested into the team.

Personally I think Rooney and Fergie will kiss and make up. They simply can't afford to sell him, they sold Ronaldo and couldn't replace him as a lot of the money went to repay the debt.

Do that with Rooney and they'll be looking a very average and ageing side indeed.

[Zulus Thousand of em]

The transfer money is only paying the interest on the debt. Which is nice.

[Bruce Rioja]

Alex will be happy to see him go, providing the club gets a good fee. Its Beckham, Ronaldo, Stam, etc, etc, all over again. The Club is much bigger than any one player or in United's case players, and Alex takes no sh*t from any of them even when he's wrong.

I'm not sure that you're measuring like with like there, FiO.

Ferguson wanted shot of Ince, Stam, Beckham, Van Nistelroy and Keane after they'd served their purpose. He certainly didn't want Ronaldo to go and my guess is that he'll be pretty desperate to hang onto Rooney also.

[seanworth]

Alex will be happy to see him go, providing the club gets a good fee. Its Beckham, Ronaldo, Stam, etc, etc, all over again. The Club is much bigger than any one player or in United's case players, and Alex takes no sh*t from any of them even when he's wrong.

I'm not sure that you're measuring like with like there, FiO.

Ferguson wanted shot of Ince, Stam, Beckham, Van Nistelroy and Keane after they'd served their purpose. He certainly didn't want Ronaldo to go and my guess is that he'll be pretty desperate to hang onto Rooney also.

After last season's performances from Rooney, and how Man U are playing at present with Rooney out of form I would be very surprised for Ferguson to want to get rid of Rooney.

[jaffka]

Wayne Rooney 'will not sign new Manchester United deal'

Manchester United have been informed that Wayne Rooney will not sign a new contract with the club, according to reports from the Press Association.

The 24-year-old striker's current deal runs out in the summer of 2012 and it is understood negotiations over a new contract have broken down.

There has been speculation that Rooney will be sold in the January transfer window, with Real Madrid interested.

However, United's response was to label that claim as "nonsense".

Rooney's relationship with United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has been under scrutiny in recent weeks.

The striker missed United's Premier League fixture at Everton last month after allegations about his private life and he was then left out of subsequent games by Ferguson, who claimed he had an ankle injury.

However, last Tuesday, after England's 0-0 draw against Montenegro in a Euro 2010 qualifier at Wembley, Rooney contradicted the Scot's statement and insisted he was fit and had not had any ankle problem.

On Saturday, Rooney, who has scored just one goal in five Premier League appearances for United this season, was left out of the starting line-up for the 2-2 draw with West Brom.

Ferguson, who is yet to speak publicly about the current situation with Rooney, brought his striker on with 20 minutes remaining, after United had squandered a two-goal lead, and asked him to play on the left wing.

Former United defender Steve Bruce, now the manager of Sunderland, said he was convinced Ferguson words and actions in recent weeks had been intended to try to protect Rooney.

"He's been trying to keep him out of the spotlight, trying to keep him under the radar, trying to protect him in his way.

"We all know Wayne Rooney is a fantastic footballer and it's the first time in his career he's had this little sort of blip. Make no mistake, he'll be back - he's our best talent in this country and it's about time we tried to protect him and look after him," Bruce told BBC 5 live's Sportsweek.

However, Spanish giants Real Madrid are rumoured to be interested in Rooney, who has not scored from open play since March.

Rooney's former United team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo moved to the Bernabeu in the summer of 2009 and the side has numerous striking options in Gonzalo Higuain, Angel Di Maria, Mesut Ozil and Karim Benzema.

On Monday, Real's director general Jorge Valdano appeared to quash speculation of an imminent move for Rooney, but he did not rule one out.

He told Telemadrid: "The question is, who would we move aside if we signed another striker?

"In January there will be neither ins nor outs. June is a long way away."

Manchester City, Chelsea and Real's arch-rivals Barcelona are also rumoured to be interested in Rooney, whose value is likely to drop as his current contract nears expiration.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/footbal ... 101905.stm

[Lofthouse Lower]

Who'd buy him? He's an overrated shithouse who had one good season. Let him and them rot.

[blurred]

Forget all that, what are these rules that City must abide by? Was that a suggestion of a salary cap???

No, it was the long-ago announced UEFA Financial Fair Play rules that come into effect in 2012-13 (I think it is).

[Zulus Thousand of em]

Forget all that, what are these rules that City must abide by? Was that a suggestion of a salary cap???

No, it was the long-ago announced UEFA Financial Fair Play rules that come into effect in 2012-13 (I think it is).

Will Real Madrid have a "get out of jail" card?

There I go again - asking a question when I already know the answer!

[Horza]

IT'S ROONEYGEDDON!

[Lord Kangana]

Life isn't kind enough for that to ever happen.

[thebish]

allegedly - rooney carried off on a stretcher from training today with an ankle injury!

is Alex says your injured - you're injured - or, at least, you soon will be!

anyway - at this press conference - SirAlex confirms that Shrek wants to leave and is adamant he won't sign a new contract.

not like ManU to be so upfront and open...

[thebish]

bloody norah - just heard SirAlex in his own words - I have NEVER heard him talk as openly - certainly piles the pressure right back on Shrek...

[Zulus Thousand of em]

bloody norah - just heard SirAlex in his own words - I have NEVER heard him talk as openly - certainly piles the pressure right back on Shrek...

Someone obviously blowing in Shrek's ear - and I don't mean his little Brass!!

This has got Citeh written all over it - isn't it lovely when it happens to a club like Manyoo?