Rooney told he could still manage Man Utd by ex-team-mate despite Birmingham axe

05 January 2024 , 16:28

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Rooney told he could still manage Man Utd by ex-team-mate despite Birmingham axe

Wayne Rooney's hopes of one day managing Manchester United may not all be lost, according to one of his former Old Trafford team-mates.

Rooney, 38, was sacked by Championship side Birmingham City on Tuesday following a disastrous 15-game spell in which the ex- England and United captain picked up just two wins. Having impressed in his first post at Derby County before a stint in charge of MLS strugglers D.C. United last year, Rooney made it clear that his ambition was to eventually manage the Red Devils.

Even with potentially decades left in the game, though, his chances look slim after Birmingham gave him the boot. But Dimitar Berbatov - one of his strike partners at United for four years, during which the Red Devils won two Premier League titles - is still backing the Premier League icon eventually take up the Old Trafford hot seat.

"It's a pity," Berbatov told Betfair regarding his pal's sacking, news of which was exclusively broken by Mirror Football . "I sympathise with him because I know he wants to be a manager and one day maybe he'll be manager of Man United - I still stick to that.

"His time at Birmingham shows every footballer who'd like to go into management that even if you're a big name, it can't save you from the sack."

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Rooney's appointment back in October was immediately met with criticism, as the newly-taken-over Blues had sacked fan favourite boss John Eustace in order to bring in the 38-year-old star, who'd done little to improve his CV in North America. Berbatov admits it's "difficult to defend" Rooney for his efforts and confessed: "It's a very tricky situation.

Your turn! Where should Wayne Rooney go next? Give us your verdict in the comments section.

Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov played together for four years at Manchester United

"Birmingham were sixth when Wazza took over, and now they're 20th in the table. It's a major disappointment to go from the top six to 20th and the statistics speak for themselves - he only won twice in 15 matches. It's difficult to defend that.

"On the other hand, he did not have the time to prove himself. In today's football, though, the most important thing is the results. You need to get the results first to give yourself time to build on your vision. You can't build on your vision while going through bad results.

‌"Unfortunately, you don't get time so easily in football. Maybe if he was given more time he would have turned things around, but again, the results are the most important thing in modern football. If the other results in the league were different and even if you're losing games you don't drop down the league, you stay in mid-table, then maybe it's going to be a different picture."

Nathan Ridley