Rooney could benefit from Special help

Wayne Rooney’s fractured relationship with Manchester United is now so brittle, so irreparable, that the debate has already moved on from ‘will he go’ to ‘what can the Special One do for him?’

And the answer, simply, is everything.

Rooney stands on the brink of an Old Trafford exit following a week of briefing and counter-briefing that has seen his entire future played out in the public domain; and now, whatever United’s official statements may say, it is only heading in one direction. Having seen his frustrations tactically leaked to Sky, the “confused and angry” striker was the subject of a bid from Chelsea on Tuesday — the first step to what is likely to be a long and drawn-out transfer negotiation, even though United rejected it out of hand yesterday.