Wayne Rooney's Agent Reportedly in China to Negotiate Manchester United Transfer

Wayne Rooney's agent, Paul Stretford, has reportedly travelled to China to try to negotiate a deal to take the Manchester United forward to the Chinese Super League.

According to BBC Sport's Simon Stone, Rooney was informed of interest from the league some time ago, and while "there are no guarantees of success," Stretford's trip to China is a "clear indication" that he'd be allowed to leave by manager Jose Mourinho.

The Chinese Super League's transfer window does not close until February 28, and if Rooney does not leave by then, a summer move "seems certain" to be on the cards.

Stone identified Jiangsu Suning and Tianjin Quanjian as the most likely destinations, though according to Fabio Cannavaro, who is in charge of the latter, they have already spoken to Rooney's camp and "talks did not progress."

Rooney has been relegated to the role of a back-up under Mourinho, a consequence of a fairly significant decline in recent years.

Indeed, the 31-year-old has largely been used in cup competitions this season, playing just 924 minutes in the Premier League across 17 appearances, averaging under an hour on the pitch in each.

Here's a breakdown of some of his options, including a potentially lucrative move to China:

Meanwhile, Mourinho has said he remains hopeful of Rooney staying put:

Of course, the boss can't be seen to say anything else given Rooney's status at the club, particularly in case he decides to stay, but it seems unlikely he'd stand in the captain's way if he opts to leave himself.

Per ESPN FC, Rooney's former team-mates, Paul Scholes and Roy Keane, believe the forward should think twice about heading to China.

Scholes told BT Sport that his lack of game time could have caused him to seek the move: "I don't know if he should go, but he'll want to go. Wayne is a player that wants to play football every week, whether it's a big game, a small game he wants to play."

As for Keane, he believes Rooney can still perform at a high level. He told ITV (via ESPN FC): "No way [Rooney] should be going to China. He can still play football at the top level in England, Germany, Spain, Italy. Going to China? Madness. He's 31 years of age, there's plenty left yet for [Rooney] to do in Europe."

Sky Sports' Kaveh Solhekol reported he's more likely to head off in the summer than this month, while Hesham Bilal-Hafiz of the Manchester Evening News believes signing off after Sunday's EFL Cup final would mark a good time to go:

"

Told China is a "maybe" for Rooney at end of the season. Totally committed to United. No falling out with José. Highly unlikely to leave now

— Kaveh Solhekol (@SkyKaveh) February 22, 2017"

Rooney does face something of a dilemma—he's already won virtually everything there is to win at Old Trafford and has etched his name into the club's history as United's record goalscorer—but heading to China could jeopardise his chances of playing in the 2018 FIFA World Cup with England and getting the seven caps he needs to attain the record of most Three Lions appearances.

A move within Europe would help in that regard, but he'd likely be taking a substantial pay cut on his current earnings let alone on the money he'd likely be receiving in China.

It does seem more likely Rooney will want to see out the season before potentially leaving in the summer, but if he has the option to head off after winning one last trophy with United, it's not out of the question he could depart before March 1.