Its true !

I know but today of all days to publicly come out and state it is trying to upset the Utd camp... Maybe he's hoping to remind Rooney he said he was 2nd choice who knows. Funny tho!

Mourinho is the 12th man!

expect a classic mourinho show, the papers will have the gloves tomorrow, book mark that !

Only Moyes didn't say Rooney was second choice to RVP at all. It's just the way the media interpreted what he said.

He said Rooney becomes especially vital if RVP were to get injured...which could be interpreted as Moyes saying that he'd still have a top class forward available should RVP ever be injured for a length of time. At no point did Moyes say Rooney was second choice or a squad player to anyone.

When Rooney is 100% fit he will start most United games..as will RVP with Rooney likely playing as a support striker in the same way he has done most of his career. But if RVP gets injured Moyes knows Rooney can step up to the plate and play as a top class number 9. It's far more likely that's what he meant but as usual the British media jump on every word and interpret it in the way suited best to themselves for selling their papers.

Moyes was misinterpreted agreed Artur, but it was naive to say what he said in the first place. It's clear Rooney wants to be the main man rather than a support striker or midfielder and he won't get that at United bar injury to RVP (rightly so).

Still, unless United pull their finger out in the market not a hope he'll be with us.

Yeah i agree that Moyes could and should have worded what he said better. Rooney has rarely played as an out and out number 9 for the majority of his United career (only one full season really the one after CR7 left).

He always seemed happier as a support striker as he was more directly involved with the play (he's been support striker to Van Nistelrooy, Saha, Ronaldo, Berbatov and RVP in his United career so it's clear Fegie never saw him as an out and out number 9 type CF)...to be honest no-one truly knows what Rooney feels as he hasn't said anything publicly. Maybe he just wants to feel loved again after falling out with Fergie last season.

After Sep 3rd he'll just get on with it he'll be fine. I expect him to score plenty this season from Baines crosses and from the extra possession we'll have from Fellaini the beast winning the ball in midfield more often than we do now

"He said Rooney becomes especially vital if RVP were to get injured..."

So what exactly does this mean? To me that says exactly as every paper has said - you are second fiddle to RVP

Lets not beat about the bush, Moyes said Rooney is second fiddle and now regrets it, shows how much of $h!t£ manager he is, fully expect the 3 points tonight unless a referee decides to give Utd the game again

Do you think if RVP or Rooney is one on one with Cech tonight, they will miss because of what Mourinho has said. It may be good copy and fun, but it's nonsense.

Simon West

I don't believe you are that thick. As far as i'm concerned Moyes meant that if RVP were injured it was good to know that he genuinely had another world class centre forward in his squad who can operate as an out and out number 9. Teams with designs on winning the league and CL need more than one world class forward.

At no point did he say Rooney would be "second choice" to anyone. When Rooney is 100% fit , as you well know, he will be in United's starting line-up virtually every week under Moyes. Hardly second choice is it? Moyes has spent the whole summer telling anyone who would listen how important to United a fit Wayne Rooney is. He has stated that on many occasions. Hardly sound like a manager saying to someone he's only a squad player /second choice does it?

I interpreted Moyes to mean RVP is the main centre forward, whereas Rooney will have a role behind him, sort of as a No10 if you like, but should anything happen to RVP, he will have Rooney to move in as the central striker.

I also don't believe his disatisfaction comes from Moyes comments but goes back further than that to last season.

BrummieBlue

Spot on mate. That's basically exactly what i've been saying it's just the media wanting to make a big story about nothing.

I agree Moyes should have worded it better at the time though...but he has said on countless occasions how important Rooney is to United. If he didn't think he was important he'd just sell him. Mourinho sells players he feels aren't important to his squad.

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i recall Rooney had problems with moyes from his everton time too

I agree with what you are saying Artur but the fact is the way he said it you take it any way you feel, and when you include a 2nd person in any kind of sentence it straight away leads to comparison. He fecked up there big time, but then when you are a manager you cant do that. Like many players you need to massage the ego of your stars. Moyes could have just said Rooney is vital to United, there we go done and dusted, unless it is to say he plans on playing both players at the same time then there should be no mention of another player.

So no i am not being thick, but you are being a tad arrogant believing people need to believe your opinion and except no others regardless of what was meant or not. Yes i may be being a tad pedantic but i am just looking at was has been said.

*what

And yeh Gazza has it spot on

MInD,GAMeS, Blue what was your profile name before Canadian blue ?

Simon

People can have their own opinions but they are looking at it with one eye here. What about all the times Moyes has said how vital Rooney is to United? He has said it countless times. Never once did he say he was second choice to anyone...Moyes knows that for virtually all his career Wayne has played as a support striker at United and with RVP there that won't change but Rooney has seemingly always been happy with a number 10 type role as he gets more involved with the play which he has always said he likes to do. Like i said i do believe he could have worded it better but you and i both know the top sides need more than one top player capable of playing as the main CF. That is clearly what Moyes meant...if he didn't why would he constantly contradict himself by saying how important Rooney is to United and that he is not for sale under any circumstances?

Artur, do you think the problems with Rooney at Old Trafford are due to him craving the position RVP plays in and realises there is not much chance of dislodging him?

Brummie

I don't think so mate no. The reason i say that is that in his 9 full seasons at United Rooney has basically been the support striker for 8 of those seasons and has always seemingly been happy to play that role as he gets more directly involved in play which he loves. He has played the support syriker role to Van Nistelrooy, then Saha, then CR7, then Berba and now RVP. In the Euro 2008 Final in Moscow he was support striker to Tevez. Fergie never saw him as a main number 9 CF. Why would he suddenly get such a bee in his bonnet about it after 9 years of virtually always playing behind a number 9?

I think the fall out with Fergie is totally to blame and nothing to do with how he was being deployed on the field.

Does anyone have any idea what the fallout with Fergie was over?

Do you think that was down to Fergie saying he'd put a transfer request in?

Enough with the Rooney untruths.

Here is what Moyes said: "I think he's got a major role to play because we need to try and get as many goals as we possible can. I think Wayne can play up top. He can play dropped in [behind the center forward]. Overall my thought on Wayne is he'll be key. If, for any reason, we had an injury to Robin, we are going to need him. I want to be able to play the two of them. I want to be able to use Danny Welbeck, Chicharito as well."

Not quite the same thing, is it?

I think we've already established that some time ago Red!

Not really Moyes fault, more SAF.

He turned the fans, board and club as a whole against a guy who has given great service to to them and won them alot of trophies. I just dont get Man Utd fans they boo him and then blame him for wanting to leave.

Its like us last year we booed Rafa but at least we didnt call him a snake when he wanted to leave.