Manchester United Transfer News: Wayne Rooney Warned by Dietmar Hamann

Former footballer Dietmar Hamann has warned Wayne Rooney that he must improve his form, or he could be shown the exit door at Manchester United.

According to talkSPORT's Alex Varney, he told the Colin Murray Show:

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His form has to improve. There will be a time, if his form doesn’t improve, where the club won’t be happy and he won’t be happy and you have to come to a decision because you can’t keep a Rooney at your club on vast amounts of money if he is a bit-part player.

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If his form doesn’t improve there may be a time sooner or later when Rooney himself wants a fresh challenge in a league that isn’t as demanding as the Premier League.

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A hat-trick against Club Brugge in the Champions League qualifiers and surpassing the great Bobby Charlton as England's all-time top goalscorer have perhaps papered over the cracks of what has been an abject campaign for the 29-year-old.

Rooney has scored just one Premier League goal all season, which ended a 999-minute goal drought stretching back to April.

Football writer Liam Canning and Football 365's Daniel Storey were among many to criticise the Englishman for his poor performance in the 3-0 hammering by Arsenal on Sunday:

Canning has been particularly vocal about Rooney's decline and yearns for the rampaging forward of yesteryear to return:

This season's struggles aside, Rooney has still made significant contributions to the Old Trafford outfit in recent years, as WhoScored.com demonstrates:

However, the forward has not reached 20 goals in all competitions since the 2011-12 season, and as he turns 30 on October 24, Hamann's comments on his long-term future at the club are understandable despite him having four years left on his contract.

According to Squawka, he has successfully completed just one take-on per match in the Premier League this season and created just eight chances.

Jon Super/Associated Press

Further, as Hamann notes, Rooney is currently keeping playmaker Juan Mata out of his natural position by occupying the role behind Anthony Martial himself.

The Spaniard has been reduced to playing out wide, where he is much less effective due to his lack of pace. Despite that, he has still outshone Rooney by racking up three goals, as many assists and creating twice as many chances, per Squawka.

Like England manager Roy Hodgson, United boss Louis van Gaal continues to show remarkable faith in his captain and has thus far refused to drop him from the side.

The Red Devils' lack of senior forward options will likely see him continue to occupy a starting berth for at least the time being, but should his form fail to pick up, the club might be best in cashing in on him while they can.