Rooney hysteria is in full effect following this afternoon’s press conference from Alex Ferguson in which he confirmed that the striker wants out of Old Trafford. Ferguson revealed that he was left “dumbfounded” by the player’s intent to leave the club and went on to lay the situation bare for press and fans alike. You can read a comprehensive transcript of the conference on United’s official site.
For Fantasy Managers it’s another twist in a season which has already many of the so-called heavy hitters stall and disappoint. While Rooney has struggled to find a semblance of last season’s devastating form, the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Fernando Torres and Frank Lampard have all failed to ignite, hampered by injuries and remnants of World Cup hangovers.
The situation with Rooney may change and he may yet prove to be an asset before his time at United comes to an end. Right now however, that seems unlikely. There is clearly tension between player and manager and Rooney’s displays to this point are a world away from last season’s showings.
Ferguson has stressed that the door of negotiation remains open, but in reality it appears that United will look to offload Rooney in January before his value diminishes. Just what he can produce in their colours up to that point is up for debate, there are already unfounded reports that Ferguson will leave Rooney out of his side from this point on.
In Fantasy terms he certainly looks set to remain an outcast. In a season where Didier Drogba and Carlos Tevez have stepped up and maintained their strong return rate, Rooney will surely remain on the periphery of our thinking. In many ways Fantasy Managers will be looking for his form to remain dipped in order to allow the likes of Dimitar Berbatov and perhaps even Javier Hernandez further opportunity to flourish.
To compound matters, Ferguson also confirmed that Rooney will not take any part in United’s Champions League tie with Bursaspor on Wednesday after being stretchered off with an ankle injury in training today. That setback, coupled with today’s revelations surely puts Rooney down as a major doubt to start at the Britannia this weekend. The Berbatov/Hernandez partnership could well be in force again then. It will be interesting to see just how today’s developments affect United as a club and in turn, whether this casts a huge cloud over their title credentials and their value as a source of Fantasy talent.
