Manchester United boss regrets selling Christiano Ronaldo
Wayne Rooney will be in charge of Birmingham as his new club meet former Man United teammate Michael Carrick’s Middlesbrough in the Championship
Former Manchester United stars Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick will face off as opposition managers on Saturday afternoon when Middlesbrough take on Birmingham City
Michael Carrick and Wayne Rooney were two integral cogs in one of Manchester United’s most successful sides.
They lifted the Champions League together for the Reds as well as a host of domestic honours. Team-mates for 11 years at Old Trafford, the two will come face to face in the dug-out on Saturday afternoon.
Rooney was appointed as manager at Birmingham City this month following his departure from MLS side DC United. His first game sees him take on Carrick’s Middlesbrough in a battle of two Premier League greats.
Carrick inspired Boro to the play-offs last term and after a slow start, they are beginning to climb the table this season. Rooney, meanwhile, will hope to guide Birmingham to the Premier League with the Blues in the top six after a strong start prior to the surprise sacking of John Eustace.
The two will surely both have aspirations of managing United in the future. Rooney has already said as much while Carrick was given a taster when he took caretaker charge in 2021.
The former midfielder showed he was a man for the big decisions when he axed Cristiano Ronaldo from the starting lineup for a game at Chelsea. The Reds drew 1-1, in the main vindicating the call which Carrick said was blown up by external parties with the Old Trafford view calmer than perhaps expected.
“It seems like it is a big decision but really, between us and me personally, it wasn’t,” he said at the time. “You can ask Cristiano, the way he responded was perfection really. Around the dressing room he was incredible, he supported the players.
“It’s a decision to pick a team to be honest, I don’t think it needs more than that. Everybody has been terrific, Cristiano included. A few tweaks and changes to freshen things up, of course Cristiano is the standout name, but it’s just a game plan and idea. I had a good chat with Cristiano and he was great.”
Rooney partnered Ronaldo in a spellbinding United attack and while the Portugal great is still playing for Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia, his former Reds team-mate is now on his third managerial job. Having battled difficult circumstances at Derby County, Rooney’s time at DC United in America failed to yield a play-off place and there will be question marks surrounding his capabilities as he attempts to hit the ground running with the Blues.
But the 37-year-old will have no issue with the pressure and conjecture having dealt with it throughout his career in the game. He has already delivered a stirring message to his players and isn’t afraid to make big decisions or statements.
Indeed, Rooney criticised Jose Mourinho for his man-management during the pair’s time together at Old Trafford while also questioning his ability to bring the best out of the squad following his departure in 2018.
“To be a successful club you need to have everything right. That relationship between some of the staff and players wasn’t great,” said Rooney. “Bringing Ole (Gunnar Solksjaer) and Mick (Phelan) in, that will change things. The staff are smiling and happy and that rubs off on the players. I think it’s a good move for the club and gives them more time to get the right man in the summer.”
Of his time on the fringes under Mourinho, Rooney added: “There was nothing like, ‘You’re not doing this, you’re not doing that. So, you’re not given something to go and work on and make yourself better at those certain things.
“I knew Zlatan (Ibrahimovic) was one of his big signings, Zlatan came in and was scoring goals. And I maybe wasn’t playing at the level I knew I could do so I knew that was the reason. That was more or less what made my mind up to go and play elsewhere.”
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