Ronaldo and Pogba gone? Rooney recommends Manchester United restart

Wayne Rooney recommends his ex-club Manchester United restart without superstars Cristiano Ronaldo and Paul Pogba in the summer. The coach of second division side Derby County also has a clear preference for the coaching chair.

“Cristiano is aging and he’s definitely not the player he was in his 20’s. It happens,” Rooney said Sky Sports about his former team-mate: “He is a dangerous goalkeeper, but I think the team needs more during the game.”

The 120-time England international also has concerns about Pogba: “I see him in France and he’s a completely different player there.”

At Manchester United it simply didn’t work for the midfielder. “I think he’s at a point where it’s probably better for him to move on. If Paul is honest with himself, he’ll find he hasn’t had the impact that he would have liked,” said the 36 -year-olds.

It is now important for the club to plan for the future. And there you have to go the way with “younger, hungrier players”, added Rooney.

Ten Hag or Pochettino? Rooney has a preference

The coach, who will succeed interim coach Ralf Rangnick in the summer, will also be decisive for the future path. Most recently, Mauricio Pochettino and Erik ten Hag were two names on the shortlist. Rooney would be my pick for the Argentine: “Pochettino has already done it in the Premier League. He made a lot of players great at Tottenham. If I had to choose one of the two, I would choose him.”

Rooney himself is not yet a candidate for the big clubs. At Derby County, after 67 games since January 2021, he has an average of 1.15 points. His contract runs until the summer of 2023.