Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho will not stand in the way of Wayne Rooney leaving the club at the end of the season.
The 31-year-old made history on Saturday as he bagged his 250th goal for the club, moving him clear of Sir Bobby Charlton at the top of United’s all-time goalscoring list.
However, as noted by The Mirror, he may not be adding too many more as Mourinho will not fight to keep him this summer amid speculation of interest from China.
It’s claimed that Rooney will have offers worth up to £700,000-a-week on the table from Chinese champions Guangzhou Evergrande and rivals Beijing Guoan, as he could well be the next marquee name to move to the Far East.
Given that he hasn’t been a regular in the United starting line-up this season, it could force the England international into a re-think moving forward.
Competition is fierce at Old Trafford, and with the likes of Marcus Rashford, Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial continuing their development, it will arguably only lead to less playing time next season.
“I don’t know, it’s up to him,” Mourinho is quoted as saying by the Mirror. “I don’t like to be critical of players who decide to go to China. It’s their life, it’s their organisation of their life, their organisation of their career.
“The money is huge. The experience can also be interesting. Everybody is responsible for their own life. I’m not critical with anyone.
“To be honest, in Wayne’s case, I have no idea because he has never mentioned it to me.”
Mourinho did go on to insist that he believes Rooney still has plenty to give Manchester United, but clearly he wouldn’t begrudge him a lucrative move to China which will surely perk the interest of the Chinese Super League clubs mentioned above who could look to swoop in the summer.