Chelsea Transfer News: Mourinho Should Call Moyes' Bluff on Rooney's Fee

Wayne Rooney is going to leave Manchester United, and Jose Mourinho has the upper hand. David Moyes' assertion that Rooney is not for sale may be intended to drive up the price—a suggestion given further credence by The Independent's report that Chelsea's £30 million bid was rejected—but he's not about to let him rot on the bench at £250,000 a week.

Mourinho can use this to his advantage by calling Moyes' bluff and withdrawing any further bids for the want-away striker until the very end of the transfer window. He can leak reports to the press that his prior bid was as far as he was prepared to go, leaving both Rooney and United unsure of their future.

Rooney will be forced to pressure the issue further, all the time growing restless and unhappy under his new manager. For his part, Moyes comes from a situation at Everton where he was forced to embrace frugality and an full understanding of value. Rooney is going to be a bit-part player at best if he stays in Manchester, which makes him unworthy of his current wages.

It's imperative that Moyes starts his first season well as he succeeds Sir Alex Ferguson. Rooney is exhausting his welcome at Old Trafford, so stubbornly refusing to sell him will not endear him to the United faithful. Moyes also knows Rooney's game after coaching him at Everton—if he had intended to make him a focal point of the team, we would have heard about it immediately.

The pressure in making the move happen is all on the United boss, and Mourinho will know this.

He is starting a new regime at Chelsea, which—given his prior success—is likely enough to tempt Rooney away. He has achieved great things at Old Trafford but as he approaches 30 he needs regular playing time. If Mourinho is willing to offer that, the choice becomes an easy one.

The longer this saga drags on, the more Moyes looks like the bad guy. Mourinho appears to be the saviour, rescuing Rooney from the bench and offering him greater playing time on a team gunning for the title. Moyes guarantees him nothing but further unhappiness and diminishing returns for United when they finally do sell him.

The new United manager is playing a dangerous game. Moyes is a very, very shrewd manager—that's never been in question. However, Chelsea need Rooney less than he needs them. They can afford to wait until the end of the transfer window before finally submitting a reduced bid for Rooney's services. Moyes will finally be forced to admit that he has to sell and Rooney will leave for less than the previous offer.

There will be other clubs sniffing round the striker in the meantime, yes. But no Premier League team will be willing to offer more than £30 million and the chances of Rooney leaving England in an attempt to secure regular football are slim.

He might not have his target yet, but Mourinho can afford to wait. Rooney and Moyes cannot. That's an advantage that the Chelsea boss should be unwilling to relinquish.