Decisions, Decisions?

 Manchester United found themselves throwing away another two goal lead in the Premier League against West Bromwich Albion, making this the second two goal cushion they have relinquished this season. Before Everton’s late scramble against the Red Devils, United had no given away a two-goal lead for just under ten years when they let a 3-1 lead against Charlton slip and the match ended 3-3.

However, the flailing results are made to look like the least of United’s worries today as I open the paper to find countless stories focusing on the future of their talisman, Wayne Rooney. Whilst it’s true that Wayne’s form has dipped somewhat, everyone was waiting for him to get out of his slump and become the striker we all know he is again. Instead of becoming unstuck Rooney has now reached the worst form of his career.

Not only is Rooney failing to deliver on the pitch, the player is now making the mistake of being too outspoken in his press-conferences and contradicting his manager. Sir Alex Ferguson’s strained relationships with previous star-players such as David Beckham and Ruud Van Nistelrooy has been well documented and it has been said that Fergie’s relationship with Rooney has been “broken beyond repair”.

Rooney had been left out of the squad, according to his manager on account of an ankle injury. However, the player told a different story: “No, I've had no ankle problem all season,” said Rooney when asked about his problems on the fitness front. There is no doubt Sir Alex will feel that Wayne has embarrassed him to the media and suspicions are arising that the manager has had a problem with the player since the allegations with his private life were revealed.

Fergie has been known to judge players on their private life and more importantly, how that affects their football famously once stating: "He was never a problem until he got married," about David Beckham. He clearly feels that Rooney’s off-field predicaments have compromised his concentration and performance on the pitch.

“To suggest Wayne Rooney will be sold in January is nonsense,” said a United spokesman, having contacted Gill over the issue of Rooney’s future. But the reality is that Rooney is on the verge of leaving United, as the latest of their iconic players to fall foul of Fergie and his notoriously combustible temper.

Whilst this all may be a ploy from the player to ensure a bigger wage packet, he might also be realising that Manchester United are not in the greatest position at the moment; with regards to both finance and football. The Glazers are sucking the club dry it seems, and despite turning over a £100m profit last season they still operated with a loss of £83m at the end of the tax year; United are losing £40m a year in interest payments on the Glazers debt alone.

If Rooney were to actually seek pastures new it would be a massive blow for United in terms of continuity. Rooney is set to become the face of Manchester United Football Club. When the old guards of Giggs and Scholes eventually retire United need a leader, they need someone who embodies the club and holds their spirit and identity and this writer thinks that Fergie had Rooney fitted nicely set up to slot into that position.

Vocal interest from Real Madrid has sparked rumours further with Florentino Pérez apparently becoming “obsessed” with signing the Englishman. Ferguson is said to be interested in French forward Karim Benzema who is currently failing to make the cut in the Spanish capital. Jose Mourinho has also welcomed the arrival of Rooney, stating that if Rooney were to come the only problem is who to get rid of, potentially setting up a nice little exchange deal with United.

Despite Wayne having said before that he has no desire to play abroad, a change of scenery might be exactly what he and his family need after all the revelations about his private life. However, those who work closely with Wayne and know him well do not seem to think that he would be suited to living abroad. And let’s be honest, when Federico Macheda came out in the press and said, in a manner of speaking, that Rooney is a “chav”, he was not wrong.

Do we really think Wayne Rooney could cope in a foreign land, learn the language and hold Spanish press conferences? His wife might enjoy the idea of Spain but personally, I think Rooney needs to try and repair his relationship with his club and his manager before he makes any rash decisions. It only takes a quick glimpse at the likes of Ajren Robben, Wesley Sneijder and Klaas Jan Huntelaar’s time at Real to see that they are a very fickle club and players come and go out of fashion there quite abruptly.

Whatever is happening at Manchester United is demonstrating cause for concern, is Fergie cracking up? Only two newspapers have been allowed into his most recent press conferences and he has been avoiding the media at every opportunity. There is also the worry in his mind that Manchester City are willing to pay whatever it takes to land Rooney’s signature, even up to £300,000 a week, some reports say. Ferguson may be left with two choices – sell Rooney to City for big money or let him away on a free to Real Madrid when his contract runs out. I would not like to be in the press room that day.