SOCCER:ALEX FERGUSON accused Wayne Rooney of showing no respect for Manchester United and personally letting him down when he confirmed that the striker wants to leave Old Trafford, opening his heart to speak of his own shock and devastation.
Ferguson said he found the decision “inexplicable” and though he maintained that United would keep a contract offer open, there was no disguising his huge sense of disappointment, admitting he was “dumbfounded”.
The player, he said, is “adamant” he wants to leave.
Ferguson believes Rooney, under the control of his agent, Paul Stretford, has made the wrong decision. Stretford is a powerful figure who was banned last year by the Football Association from working as an agent for nine months over charges relating to how he acquired the right to represent Rooney in 2002-03.
On a day of remarkable drama at the club, it emerged that Rooney had been taken off United’s training pitch on a stretcher after suffering an ankle injury.
The forward left Carrington on crutches, continuing a dismal season in which form has deserted him. It has also become clear he is not only determined to sever ties with United, but also willing to follow Carlos Tevez’s path to Manchester City.
“I’m disappointed, very disappointed, I can’t believe it,” Ferguson said. “He had told us he was happy at the club, that he was at the best club in the world, so I must say it was terribly disappointing to get the news because I can’t quite understand it.
“We are as bemused as anyone because we can’t understand why he would want to leave. It’s a club that no one can deny is one of the most successful in British football. We have won 40 major trophies, been to countless cup finals, we have a fantastic history, a great stadium, great training arrangements. There’s a platform for anyone to take up a challenge here. There is incredible romance at this club. We just don’t understand it.”
Ferguson also said he was hurt by the suggestion Rooney wants to leave because of irreparable differences with the manager.
“There’s been no falling out. We’ve not had any argument, not a bit. But you have to understand the mechanics of these situations, when people are working to leave a club. It’s an easy one to say they’ve fallen out with the manager. It’s a very easy one to say that. And I think there are traces of that, too.”
Rooney, it emerged, told United, via Stretford, as long ago as August 14th, two days before their first game of the season, that he wants to leave. Ferguson said: “I was at Carrington and David Gill phoned and said: ‘I’m coming over, I have some bad news for you, his agent has intimated that he won’t be signing a contract and he wants away, I can’t believe this.’
“I couldn’t believe it either. I was dumbfounded. It was a shock. I had a meeting with him and he intimated it to me in his own way. I said: ‘The only thing I want from you is to respect the club’s position and its traditions and behave like a proper professional and we will try to see it through’ . . . And, you know, I don’t know if he has done that.
“I have my doubts reading all these things about him falling out with me and all that nonsense.
“It’s disappointing because we have done everything we possibly can to help Wayne Rooney. Since the minute he’s come to the club, we’ve always been a harbour for him. Any time he has been in trouble, we have done nothing but help him. I was even prepared to give him financial advice, many times. I don’t know how many times we have helped him in terms of his private life and other matters.
“But we’ve got a situation now where we have to clarify it for our fans. What we saw on Saturday was unacceptable, the minute it got to 2-2 and the fans were chanting for Wayne Rooney. So we had to clarify the situation and put it right.
“There is no offer on the table, because they’re not prepared to listen to an offer, but we have to keep it open. We were honouring that request from Wayne to stay at the club he loved. He said to us the best thing he’d ever done was sign for Manchester United, so David was prepared to offer Wayne the best contract any player could have in the country.”
After England’s game against Montenegro last week, Rooney said that he had not been suffering from an ankle injury this season, in direct contradiction to the manager’s statements of the previous few weeks. United suspect this was a ploy from his camp to substantiate subsequent claims that the player and manager were at odds.
"Why he came out and said that, you can only guess yourself," Ferguson said. "It was disappointing because he was injured. "
DUMBFOUNDED
On Rooney's request to leave
"I was in the office on August 14th and (chief executive) David (Gill) phoned me. He had got a phone call from his agent saying that he (Rooney) wasn't signing a contract. I couldn't believe it. I just was dumbfounded. I could not understand it because only months before he was saying he was at the greatest club in the world and he wanted to stay for life. We just don't know what's changed the boy's mind. I then asked to have a meeting with the boy and he reiterated what his agent had said – he wanted to go. The one thing I said was 'Just remember one thing: respect this club. I don't want any nonsense from you. Respect the club'."
On that injury
"He was injured. Why he came out and said that you can only guess yourself. It was disappointing he said that. We sent him for a scan but there was no doubt that although he's able to train he's still carrying traces of that injury."
On his relationship with Rooney
"We've not had any argument. You have to understand the mechanics of these situations when someone wants to leave the club. It's an easy one to say you've fallen out with the manager."
