Manchester United Transfer News: Wayne Rooney Revelation Reported, Top Rumours

Former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson reportedly revealed he would have sold veteran striker Wayne Rooney during the 2015 summer transfer window had he still been in charge of the club.

That's according to the Daily Mail's Ian Ladyman, who made the revelation after Wednesday's disappointing 0-0 draw against PSV Eindhoven in the UEFA Champions League.

Rooney once again failed to convince, and per Ladyman, Ferguson would have pulled the trigger on selling the England international before the season even began:

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At the heart of United's current attacking issues lies Rooney. Short of form and confidence – not to mention goals – the 30-year-old has borne the brunt of much of the criticism that has come United's way this season.

Had Sir Alex Ferguson still been manager of the club, Rooney would have been sold last summer. Ferguson said so privately only last spring.

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The 30-year-old has scored just twice in 11 Premier League matches this season and scored 12 goals last season, per WhoScored.com. Those numbers are well below what we've come to expect from Rooney, but despite his dreadful form, manager Louis van Gaal continues to put faith in the forward.

Paul Mariner, Steve Nicol and Alejandro Moreno of ESPN FC recently debated whether he should:

Ladyman's claims Ferguson said he would have sold Rooney after his underwhelming 2014-15 season shouldn't come as a huge surprise, given the poor relationship the two had toward the end of the Scotsman's tenure with the club.

As reported by the Daily Telegraph's Matt Law, the two fell out during Ferguson's last season at Old Trafford, and they only recently made amends. Ladyman says Ferguson made the comments last spring, when the issues between the two had yet to be resolved.

If an opportunity had become available, Ferguson could have pounced and moved the forward while his value was still high. For instance, Sven-Goran Eriksson recently revealed he would love to bring Rooney to China, per the Sun's Simon Austin. A club like Shanghai SIPG would be willing to pay top dollar for a big-name player like Rooney.

Jon Super/Associated Press

Ferguson guided the Red Devils to an unprecedented amount of silverware, doing so with a famous ruthlessness. He was an expert at identifying weaknesses and fielding the right squads, and on several occasions, that meant dropping Rooney from his squad whenever he saw fit, per the Daily Mirror's David McDonnell.

Based on what we've seen from the veteran during the first 11 matches of the Premier League season, he likely wouldn't have held his spot in the squad for very long under Ferguson. Rooney hasn't been dreadful, but given United's lack of scoring, his sloppy form in front of goal would have warranted a change.

And given his struggles during the 2014-15 season, it's not hard to imagine Ferguson at least contemplating the idea of selling one of the most talented players he ever worked with. All footballers deteriorate at some point, and Ferguson was always good at anticipating said regression and cashing in when he had to.

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