[bbfan1991]

Rooney wants to strike a new deal

Wayne Rooney will seek assurances from Sir Alex Ferguson over his role with Manchester United before committing to a new contract at Old Trafford this summer.

Negotiations over whether to extend the England forward’s £250,000-a-week deal will begin in the next few weeks amid huge uncertainty over Rooney’s future.

His main concern is likely to be where he will play now Robin van Persie has established himself as the club’s first-choice striker.

England’s leading striker has played in midfield recently and that is bound to raise concerns with the World Cup just over a year away and qualification far from certain.

As well as dropping Rooney to the bench for the Champions League clash with Real Madrid in March, Ferguson substituted him for the fourth time in five games on Sunday at Arsenal — a scenario that would have been unthinkable not so long ago.

There is little doubt Rooney would prefer to stay, but it would be understandable if the 27-year-old wants to be sure he is making the right move as he negotiates the last big contract of his career.

United, for their part, will also seek a firm commitment from Rooney as they consider whether to cash in on a player who has two years left on his contract or to offer him another deal.

I hope so. Wayne wants to stay and he is still one of our best players IMO, he is versatile and he has not had his best season but still had a very good enough contribution overall and the Summer rest will revitalise him and inspire him to do better next season with competition for places becoming even more important at United.