Retired soccer player and former DC United manager Wayne Rooney revealed that he rejected an offer to coach in the Saudi Pro League before accepting his new role as manager of Birmingham City FC. Current Birmingham chief executive Garry Cook revealed that, when he was the CEO of the Saudi League, he attempted to lure Rooney but to no avail.

“I think for myself, firstly to get back into English football is great. It’s what I’ve wanted to do,” Rooney explained. “I’ve had opportunities over the last four to six weeks at other clubs as well, but since speaking to Birmingham, it was a really easy decision. I want to be successful; it’s clear this club wants to be successful; and everything we spoke about was very similar,” the Birmingham manager said of his new job.

This comes after Rooney parted ways with DC United last week after the MLS team was eliminated from MLS playoff contention.

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D.C. United has mutually agreed to part ways with head coach Wayne Rooney after the team failed to make the 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs. This is the fourth consecutive season, and second under Rooney, that United hasn’t clinched a playoff spot.

The club and Rooney confirmed the news following D.C. United’s last game of the regular season. D.C. got a 2-0 win over the New York City FC, but that wasn’t enough to finish higher than No. 9 in the Eastern Conference.

“I think it’s just the right time,” said Rooney. “I’ve done everything I can to try and get the club into the playoffs. It’s not been a single thing that has happened. It’s about timing in your career. I’ve really enjoyed my time here.”

According to Rooney, he believes it is the “right time” for him to return to England. He added that he previously had offers to work in his home country but decided to stay with D.C. United in hopes of helping them make the playoffs.

Wayne Rooney initially spent two years with D.C. United as a player, scoring 25 goals in 52 matches in 2018 and 2019. He returned to the club as a head coach in the summer of 2022 after a stint with Championship side Derby County. In 53 games in charge of D.C., Rooney oversaw 14 wins, 14 draws, and 25 losses.

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Wayne Rooney has decided to put an end to his playing career. The 35-year-old star announced his decision on Friday while also confirming he’ll become a manager for Derby County on a full-time basis.

Rooney joined Derby as a player/coach in January 2020 following his two-season stint in the MLS with D.C. United. He was promoted to an interim-manager role in November when the English club parted ways with Phillip Cocu.

“I will miss playing, of course, but I can now get excited about the future and my role as a manager,” said Rooney.

“I can promise everyone involved in the club and all our fans, my staff, and I will leave no stone unturned in achieving the potential I have witnessed over the last 12 months of this historic football club,” he added.

Since arriving at Derby, Rooney made 35 appearances for the Championship side. He scored seven goals and added three assists.

As an interim manager, Rooney had three wins and four draws in his first eight games. However, he lost the last three and is facing a tough task to get the team back on the winning path.

Wayne Rooney’s professional career started with Everton, where he became a phenom and lauded as one of the biggest talents in English soccer. Manchester United took notice and made him the world’s most expensive teenager in 2004.

Rooney stayed at Old Trafford for 13 years, winning every trophy imaginable, including five Premier League titles and one from the UEFA Champions League. He played a total of 559 games for Man Utd, scoring club-record 253 goals.

In 2017, Rooney re-joined Everton but only spent 18 months with the club before deciding to come to the United States.  He played 52 games with D.C., scoring 25 goals and earning one MLS All-Star nod.

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Wayne Rooney’s MLS adventure is coming to an end sooner than expected. Rooney announced on Tuesday that he is leaving D.C. United in order to take on a player-coach role with English Championship side Derby County.

Rooney won’t assume his new role immediately, however, as he looks to wrap up the 2019 MLS season with D.C. and try to win MLS Cup. The veteran English forward made 21 appearances in MLS this year,  scoring 11 goals and dishing six assists.

“I remain fully focused on giving my all for the team for the rest of this season and repaying the support shown by the Black-and-Red faithful by hopefully delivering an MLS Cup to Audi Field,” – said Rooney in a statement.  “My time in Major League Soccer is something I will always be proud of.” 

Rooney’s decision to leave the United States was a result of him wanting to be closer to his family. The 33-year-old was also attracted by the opportunity to learn under Derby’s new boss Phillip Cocu.

“Wayne Rooney is an extremely talented and top-class footballer,” – said Cocu of his new player and staff member. “It is an exciting prospect for him to be joining Derby County and he can bring so much to this squad, both on and off the pitch.”

Wayne Rooney joined D.C. United in 2018, signing a three and a half years deal with the club. Rooney’s first year in MLS proved to be quite successful, as he scored 12 goals and provided six assists in 22 games. He was also named into MLS Best XI at the end of 2018.

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The 2018 MLS season didn’t look well for D.C. United. They had two wins in the first 14 games and were stuck at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings. Then the team secured a move for former Manchester United superstar Wayne Rooney, and their luck changed.

Since Rooney came to Washington, D.C. United started playing like a different team, managing 10 wins and collecting 33 points. The latest win against FC Dallas even moved them to a playoff spot with just three games left in the regular season.

According to Rooney, the reason why they managed to win Dallas in a close game is that the whole team is “thriving” on the pressure to get into playoffs.

“I think that’s where you want to be in soccer — to have these pressure moments,” – the 32-year-old striker told the reporters. “No one wants to be in the middle or the bottom of the league and just playing for the fun of it. You want pressure moments and to feel that pressure, it’s important what we’re doing. We’ve got that pressure and we’re thriving on it and we’re picking up results and wins.“

D.C. United is currently sixth in Eastern Conference with one point ahead of Montreal Impact on the seventh spot. The good news for United is that they also have one game less than Impact, which gives them more room for errors.

Rooney doesn’t want his team to satisfy themselves with making the playoffs as the last seeded team. He is already thinking about catching fifth-seeded Columbus Crew.

“We’ll have the game against New York City on Sunday,” – he added. “As I’ve said before, every game is a pressure game and if we can win Wednesday we know we’re three points away — regardless of what Montreal do — from making that last spot. And you never know, we could even catch Columbus, so we keep pushing and see where we finish.“

Since joining D.C. United in June 2018, Wayne Rooney played 16 games in Major League Soccer and managed to score nine goals while adding seven assists.

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It looks like everything is set for Everton star Wayne Rooney to come to Major League Soccer. Rooney visited Washington last week to discuss a potential contract with DC United and now the team’s coach Ben Olsen expressed his hope that both parties are interested in getting the job done.

“There is interest in Wayne Rooney from our end and I think there is interest from his end too,” – Olsen said to reporters on Saturday night. “I hope it can get over the line because he’s a very good player who can help us. He would be a great player for this league.”

According to ESPN, Wayne Rooney agreed to personal details that would make him DC United’s highest paid players and keep him with the team through 2020 MLS season.

“Nothing is done, so I don’t want to get into talk of arrival until he actually arrives,” – Olsen added. “Nothing is ever done in this world and when you’re looking at a deal of this scope and size. We’ll see, but hopefully, we can get it done.”

Wayne Rooney has a solid 2017-18 season behind him, appearing in 40 games for Everton and scoring 11 goals. DC United could really use his services, considering the fact that the team is currently last in the Eastern Conference with just two wins out of 10 games played.

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After Zlatan Ibrahimovic joined the Los Angeles Galaxy, another Premier League star has his eyes set on the Major League Soccer. According to reports from BBC and Sky Sport, Everton’s forward Wayne Rooney has agreed in principle to join D.C. United.

The deal to bring Wayne Rooney to the United States has been in the works for several weeks now, and player’s agents recently visited Washington to iron out smaller details. The 32-year-old will receive a contract throughout the 2020 MLS season, becoming the team’s highest-paid player.

Although it looks that the move to MLS is inevitable for former England national team captain, Everton would sure like to keep Rooney for the next season as well.

“There have been rumors about Wayne going abroad, China or America, but we won’t find out until Wayne and his agent have been contacted and whether he feels like he wants to be here or not.” – said Everton’s head coach Sam Allardyce . “At the moment he is an Everton fan as well as an Everton player so I wouldn’t consider anything is on the cards at the moment.“

“It would have to be massive for him to want to leave Everton.” – added Allardyce while dismissing reports that Rooney might be unsatisfied with his role on the team.

Wayne Rooney started his professional career with Everton, where he played in 67 games from 2002 to 2004 while scoring 15 Premiere League goals in that period. He earned himself a transfer to Manchester United in 2004 and went on to become one of the team’s legends. He played in 559 games during his 13 seasons with the team and managed to score 253 in all competitions, becoming United’s all-time scoring leader. Rooney also won numerous trophies with Manchester United, including five national league titles and one UEFA Champions League. In July 2017, he decided to return to Everton.

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Retired soccer player and former DC United manager Wayne Rooney revealed that he rejected an offer to coach in the Saudi Pro League before accepting his new role as manager of Birmingham City FC. Current Birmingham chief executive Garry Cook revealed that, when he was the CEO of the Saudi League, he attempted to lure Rooney but to no avail.

“I think for myself, firstly to get back into English football is great. It’s what I’ve wanted to do,” Rooney explained. “I’ve had opportunities over the last four to six weeks at other clubs as well, but since speaking to Birmingham, it was a really easy decision. I want to be successful; it’s clear this club wants to be successful; and everything we spoke about was very similar,” the Birmingham manager said of his new job.

This comes after Rooney parted ways with DC United last week after the MLS team was eliminated from MLS playoff contention.

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D.C. United has mutually agreed to part ways with head coach Wayne Rooney after the team failed to make the 2023 MLS Cup Playoffs. This is the fourth consecutive season, and second under Rooney, that United hasn’t clinched a playoff spot.

The club and Rooney confirmed the news following D.C. United’s last game of the regular season. D.C. got a 2-0 win over the New York City FC, but that wasn’t enough to finish higher than No. 9 in the Eastern Conference.

“I think it’s just the right time,” said Rooney. “I’ve done everything I can to try and get the club into the playoffs. It’s not been a single thing that has happened. It’s about timing in your career. I’ve really enjoyed my time here.”

According to Rooney, he believes it is the “right time” for him to return to England. He added that he previously had offers to work in his home country but decided to stay with D.C. United in hopes of helping them make the playoffs.

Wayne Rooney initially spent two years with D.C. United as a player, scoring 25 goals in 52 matches in 2018 and 2019. He returned to the club as a head coach in the summer of 2022 after a stint with Championship side Derby County. In 53 games in charge of D.C., Rooney oversaw 14 wins, 14 draws, and 25 losses.

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Wayne Rooney has decided to put an end to his playing career. The 35-year-old star announced his decision on Friday while also confirming he’ll become a manager for Derby County on a full-time basis.

Rooney joined Derby as a player/coach in January 2020 following his two-season stint in the MLS with D.C. United. He was promoted to an interim-manager role in November when the English club parted ways with Phillip Cocu.

“I will miss playing, of course, but I can now get excited about the future and my role as a manager,” said Rooney.

“I can promise everyone involved in the club and all our fans, my staff, and I will leave no stone unturned in achieving the potential I have witnessed over the last 12 months of this historic football club,” he added.

Since arriving at Derby, Rooney made 35 appearances for the Championship side. He scored seven goals and added three assists.

As an interim manager, Rooney had three wins and four draws in his first eight games. However, he lost the last three and is facing a tough task to get the team back on the winning path.

Wayne Rooney’s professional career started with Everton, where he became a phenom and lauded as one of the biggest talents in English soccer. Manchester United took notice and made him the world’s most expensive teenager in 2004.

Rooney stayed at Old Trafford for 13 years, winning every trophy imaginable, including five Premier League titles and one from the UEFA Champions League. He played a total of 559 games for Man Utd, scoring club-record 253 goals.

In 2017, Rooney re-joined Everton but only spent 18 months with the club before deciding to come to the United States.  He played 52 games with D.C., scoring 25 goals and earning one MLS All-Star nod.

The post Ex-D.C. United Striker Wayne Rooney Retires, Takes Managerial Role with Derby appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Wayne Rooney’s MLS adventure is coming to an end sooner than expected. Rooney announced on Tuesday that he is leaving D.C. United in order to take on a player-coach role with English Championship side Derby County.

Rooney won’t assume his new role immediately, however, as he looks to wrap up the 2019 MLS season with D.C. and try to win MLS Cup. The veteran English forward made 21 appearances in MLS this year,  scoring 11 goals and dishing six assists.

“I remain fully focused on giving my all for the team for the rest of this season and repaying the support shown by the Black-and-Red faithful by hopefully delivering an MLS Cup to Audi Field,” – said Rooney in a statement.  “My time in Major League Soccer is something I will always be proud of.” 

Rooney’s decision to leave the United States was a result of him wanting to be closer to his family. The 33-year-old was also attracted by the opportunity to learn under Derby’s new boss Phillip Cocu.

“Wayne Rooney is an extremely talented and top-class footballer,” – said Cocu of his new player and staff member. “It is an exciting prospect for him to be joining Derby County and he can bring so much to this squad, both on and off the pitch.”

Wayne Rooney joined D.C. United in 2018, signing a three and a half years deal with the club. Rooney’s first year in MLS proved to be quite successful, as he scored 12 goals and provided six assists in 22 games. He was also named into MLS Best XI at the end of 2018.

The post Wayne Rooney Leaving D.C. United for Player-Coach Role with Derby Country appeared first on SportzBonanza.

The 2018 MLS season didn’t look well for D.C. United. They had two wins in the first 14 games and were stuck at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings. Then the team secured a move for former Manchester United superstar Wayne Rooney, and their luck changed.

Since Rooney came to Washington, D.C. United started playing like a different team, managing 10 wins and collecting 33 points. The latest win against FC Dallas even moved them to a playoff spot with just three games left in the regular season.

According to Rooney, the reason why they managed to win Dallas in a close game is that the whole team is “thriving” on the pressure to get into playoffs.

“I think that’s where you want to be in soccer — to have these pressure moments,” – the 32-year-old striker told the reporters. “No one wants to be in the middle or the bottom of the league and just playing for the fun of it. You want pressure moments and to feel that pressure, it’s important what we’re doing. We’ve got that pressure and we’re thriving on it and we’re picking up results and wins.“

D.C. United is currently sixth in Eastern Conference with one point ahead of Montreal Impact on the seventh spot. The good news for United is that they also have one game less than Impact, which gives them more room for errors.

Rooney doesn’t want his team to satisfy themselves with making the playoffs as the last seeded team. He is already thinking about catching fifth-seeded Columbus Crew.

“We’ll have the game against New York City on Sunday,” – he added. “As I’ve said before, every game is a pressure game and if we can win Wednesday we know we’re three points away — regardless of what Montreal do — from making that last spot. And you never know, we could even catch Columbus, so we keep pushing and see where we finish.“

Since joining D.C. United in June 2018, Wayne Rooney played 16 games in Major League Soccer and managed to score nine goals while adding seven assists.

The post Wayne Rooney: D.C. United “Thriving” on Pressure to Claim a Playoff Spot appeared first on SportzBonanza.

It looks like everything is set for Everton star Wayne Rooney to come to Major League Soccer. Rooney visited Washington last week to discuss a potential contract with DC United and now the team’s coach Ben Olsen expressed his hope that both parties are interested in getting the job done.

“There is interest in Wayne Rooney from our end and I think there is interest from his end too,” – Olsen said to reporters on Saturday night. “I hope it can get over the line because he’s a very good player who can help us. He would be a great player for this league.”

According to ESPN, Wayne Rooney agreed to personal details that would make him DC United’s highest paid players and keep him with the team through 2020 MLS season.

“Nothing is done, so I don’t want to get into talk of arrival until he actually arrives,” – Olsen added. “Nothing is ever done in this world and when you’re looking at a deal of this scope and size. We’ll see, but hopefully, we can get it done.”

Wayne Rooney has a solid 2017-18 season behind him, appearing in 40 games for Everton and scoring 11 goals. DC United could really use his services, considering the fact that the team is currently last in the Eastern Conference with just two wins out of 10 games played.

The post DC United Head Coach Ben Olsen Confirms Interest in Wayne Rooney appeared first on SportzBonanza.

After Zlatan Ibrahimovic joined the Los Angeles Galaxy, another Premier League star has his eyes set on the Major League Soccer. According to reports from BBC and Sky Sport, Everton’s forward Wayne Rooney has agreed in principle to join D.C. United.

The deal to bring Wayne Rooney to the United States has been in the works for several weeks now, and player’s agents recently visited Washington to iron out smaller details. The 32-year-old will receive a contract throughout the 2020 MLS season, becoming the team’s highest-paid player.

Although it looks that the move to MLS is inevitable for former England national team captain, Everton would sure like to keep Rooney for the next season as well.

“There have been rumors about Wayne going abroad, China or America, but we won’t find out until Wayne and his agent have been contacted and whether he feels like he wants to be here or not.” – said Everton’s head coach Sam Allardyce . “At the moment he is an Everton fan as well as an Everton player so I wouldn’t consider anything is on the cards at the moment.“

“It would have to be massive for him to want to leave Everton.” – added Allardyce while dismissing reports that Rooney might be unsatisfied with his role on the team.

Wayne Rooney started his professional career with Everton, where he played in 67 games from 2002 to 2004 while scoring 15 Premiere League goals in that period. He earned himself a transfer to Manchester United in 2004 and went on to become one of the team’s legends. He played in 559 games during his 13 seasons with the team and managed to score 253 in all competitions, becoming United’s all-time scoring leader. Rooney also won numerous trophies with Manchester United, including five national league titles and one UEFA Champions League. In July 2017, he decided to return to Everton.

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