United are inevitably now a selling club"
Crystal Palace legend Mark Bright has risked the wrath of Manchester United fans by labelling the Red Devils “a selling club” in light of reports suggesting Wayne Rooney wants to leave Old Trafford.
The 24-year-old England international has reportedly shelved contract talks with Manchester United and has told his employers he wants to leave Old Trafford amid inevitable interest from their Premier League rivals Manchester City and Chelsea, in addition to Real Madrid, Barcelona and Inter Milan,
Citing the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham and Ruud van Nistelrooy, Bright claims Manchester United “can’t get away from the fact” they are a “selling club” and suggests Sir Alex Ferguson could even jettison the England international in January in order to obtain the highest transfer fee.
Bright predicts Manchester United are already on a steady decline due to the debts their much maligned owners have saddled the club with, and that should they fail to win the Premier League or Champions League this season, servicing those debts will become near on impossible.
In his column for the Metro, Bright said: “When players leave Manchester United there are only two clubs you can go to without taking a step down - Barcelona or Real Madrid - and from what I’m reading and hearing it seems after six years at United it’s time for a change.
“Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes have spent their entire careers at United and will probably try to convince Rooney there is no better place than Old Trafford to ply your trade.
“But United can’t get away from the fact they are inevitably now a selling club. Ruud van Nistelrooy, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo have all left Old Trafford in their prime to take the step up to Europe’s most successful club, Real.
“From my experiences, most players have argued with the manager, it happens all the time. But this saga has a different feel to it.
“At the age of 24, and after recent troubles in his private life, Rooney might feel a clean break and move away from England might do him and his family good.
“United cannot gamble and allow him to walk away on a free transfer, so January would be a logical time to sell.
“Manchester City look genuine title contenders, are above United in the table and have millions to spend compared with United, who have huge debts. Fergie doesn’t have the money to compete with them in the transfer market.
“Should United not win the league or Champions League this season, their income will start to fall. Servicing the debt will take the majority of the revenue the club generates. It could be the start of the fall from grace.
“Ferguson’s investment in youth has paid off handsomely in the past and he will be put to the test again in the coming years, because buying big for United could become a thing of the past.”
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