Bharath Rammr
Jose Mourinho could be handed a major boost with regard to the availability of players ahead of the home match against Burnley, as it is reported that both Wayne Rooney and Chris Smalling could feature in the squads. Rooney was unavailable for the last two games – against Chelsea and Manchester City – after suffering an injury in the 4-1 win over Fenerbahce almost a fortnight ago. Smalling, meanwhile, missed the EFL Cup game against City with a foot injury, and his participation against Burnley could be decided by a late fitness test.
There has been a lot of speculation surrounding Rooney and it does not seem to die down with the January transfer window fast approaching. Announcing the possible return of the 31-year-old to the squad, Mourinho confirmed that the club have no intentions to sell Rooney. The striker has a contract until the summer of 2019. His reported wages of around £300,000 per week would be enough to put off any interested party, as they may think twice about paying this sum of money for a player at the tail end of his career. According to the club’s official site, Mourinho said:
“You can write and say what you want. But it is not true. He is a very good player, a very important player for us and he is not going anywhere.
“We like him, he likes us and, while he is not happy to be on the bench, he is more unhappy to be injured.”
“There are no problems, but you need to sell papers and you write lies. You even write lies about myself when I say it is ‘a disaster’ because every time I leave my hotel I have somebody chasing [me], you write that I say my life is disaster. This is not true. Rooney is back tomorrow.”
Only a few weeks ago, Mourinho stated that Rooney had claimed the right to choose his own future after having served United so well in the last decade. Transfer rumours, though, have largely cropped as a result of Rooney not getting any first-team action in the league or important games. Since the 3-1 loss against Watford more than a month ago, Rooney has largely been on the sidelines. His camp will certainly feel hard done by Jose Mourinho and the previous managers, who decided to utilise his versatility by playing him in every other position than his favourite.
Up until the 2013-14 season, Rooney has been a regular source of goals for the club. Only in the last few years have managers started utilising the striker in the midfield or even in the defence. There have been occasions when Rooney simply looks lost on the pitch, but the perseverance to help the team has overcome the striker more often than not. Rooney would feel that he is harshly blamed for United’s decline, as results have not shown an improvement even after dropping him from the first team.
Smalling, on the other hand, was heavily criticised for his poor performance in the 4-0 loss against Chelsea a week ago. The manager, however, says that the England international gave his best and possibly more, as he was struggling with an injury throughout the game. Mourinho says that it was a phenomenal effort from the defender to play through the pain barrier against a top opposition. He continued:
“He was phenomenal to play against Chelsea with such a difficult physical situation. But he could not do it three days later against City. No way.
“No, it’s not that [a groin injury].”
A late fitness test will decide his participation against Burnley.
