Wayne Rooney Should Explore All Options in Summer Transfer Window

For fans of a certain age, Wayne Rooney is a name almost as synonymous with Manchester United as legendary manager Alex Ferguson. 

Now don't get the meaning of that assertion twisted. Sir Alex is arguably the greatest skipper in world football history, a bastion of consistent excellence and forward-thinking that helped build the Old Trafford side into a worldwide monolith. David Moyes may become a worthy successor, but he'll never truly replace the legendary manager. 

Rooney represents something different. In our 24/7 sports culture, we've become more enamored about everything that happens with our club's star player. Who they're dating, why they're playing poorly, what they ate for breakfast. Whatever. Fans will gobble up anything with the name of their favorite player attached. (Like this!).

Rooney has been the Red Devils' most recognizable face throughout the dawning of the digital era. Almost since the moment Rooney joined the club from Everton on a record record £25.6 million transfer, he's been the club's most highly publicized star. It started with Rooney as an 18-year-old ball of talent. And now nearly a decade later, Rooney is one of the more decorated stars in Manchester United history.

Cosmically, it almost seems right that that the 27-year-old forward might follow his legendary manager out the door.

By now, anyone within wi-fi range—in other words, anyone who hasn't spent their year trapped in a major airport terminal—knows Rooney could be on the move this summer. Pick up any English newspaper and you'll hear the latest rumblings about Rooney heading to just about any major club with an open pocketbook. Seriously. He's been linked to PSG. And Chelsea. And Arsenal. And countless others like Bayern, who denied their interest.

From United's perspective, they would have to think long and hard about the implications of such a move. Moyes is already replacing Ferguson. Do they really want to task him with being the man forever known as selling Rooney as well? And there are the on-field reasons also, what with Rooney still being among the world's best players—even as his role within the club is in flux.

United's club season was nothing short of an unmitigated success. The Red Devils won their 13th Premier League title, besting rival Manchester City by 11 points in the table. United's triumph over the crosstown club came as a massive relief to those worrisome fans at Old Trafford, some of whom thought City was on the precipice of a multi-year dynasty. 

To ship off Rooney—even if the board redistributed most or all the money back into the transfer kitty—following such a season sends a mixed message. 

For Rooney, though, it's time to think hard about moving on.

When United made last summer's biggest splash landing Robin van Persie, it was clear an adjustment period was in order. A 4-4-2 setup allows freedom for both forwards to roam, but eventually someone takes a backseat. By about 15 minutes into the Manchester United Premier League campaign, it became clear that someone wasn't going to be the shiny new van Persie.

Rooney was benched for van Persie in the season's second game, one where he came in late and suffered a leg injury. With a three-goal game versus Southampton in the Red Devils' first game with Rooney out of the lineup, van Persie established a dominance he would carry throughout the campaign. 

The 29-year-old forward quickly struck up as United's go-to scorer, spurring an early-season run that would eventually culminate in a Premier League title. By the time Rooney returned to the pitch after injury, van Persie was an alpha-dog on his way to leading the Premiership with 26 goals.

Rooney? He was left to mire in a season where he looked far more adrift than dominant. Though he stayed in relatively fine form—12 goals and 10 assists in 27 games isn't anything to sneeze at—there wasn't the same level of dominance. There was a level of tentativeness and lack of confidence that just wasn't there for a long time. 

While rooted in restoring his confidence, Ferguson's tactical switch to Rooney in the midfield couldn't have helped matters. There were some who said Rooney was perhaps better off there long-term, but he had to wonder: At what point did it become acceptable to yo-yo one of the world's best players like this?

So he asked Ferguson for a transfer earlier this month. Or he didn't. No one quite knows what happened between Ferguson and Rooney, and we may never. But the impact of that request was a fraying of a relationship with fans that had almost certainly been on the rocks internally.

With two years remaining on his contract, Rooney can't force anything. United could simply force Rooney to play out the next couple of years without entertaining offers. After all, they're paying him quite the hefty wage. 

But he can request an opportunity to play the field. To hear out high-level teams willing to pay his salary, whether that be within the Premier League or elsewhere. Even if the bid doesn't come in high enough or the contract negotiations go under, it could be worthwhile just to hear he's wanted. Like a bored husband who goes out with his single friends, forgets his wedding ring and gets hit on by the cute bartender. There's no harm in a little confidence pick-me-up.

And if Rooney and United choose to part ways, so be it. No one should look back on his run with any sourness, with it having been one of the most successful in club history. Rooney is the face of success under the Glazer family ownership group. 

Whether that's the case after this summer remains to be seen. 

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