Rooney interests me – Mourinho

(GSM) – Real Madrid manager José Mourinho admits he would love to see unsettled Manchester United forward at the Santiago Bernabéu in the near future.

Despite expecting that the England star to stay put at Old Trafford, Mourinho has revealed that he would be keen to snatch Rooney away from Old Trafford.

Rooney is likely to depart from United after boss Alex Ferguson confirmed the former Everton star has snubbed a new contract offer from the Red Devils and intends to leave Old Trafford.

And while Real Madrid is thought to be among the front-runners to sign Rooney, Mourinho – a known admirer of the player’s talents – expects the 24-year-old to remain a Red Devil for life.

“My thoughts are he will stay,” Mourinho told Sky Sports.

“He probably wants to leave for some reasons, but I believe he belongs to Man Utd, he belongs to Man Utd fans, he belongs to Old Trafford.

“I believe he is going to stay.

“But if at the end of day Man Utd decides that he is to leave, give me a call.”

Asked if he would be interested to sign Rooney, Mourinho commented: “Everybody would be interested, but again I don’t think so.

“I think and I wish because I like him, I like Sir Alex, I like Man Utd I believe the best thing for him is to stay there for life.

Asked if he would be excited about the prospect of teaming Rooney up with Cristiano Ronaldo again at the Madrid-based club, Mourinho remarked: “Yes, but he will stay at Old Trafford for sure.”