Mourinho adamant Rooney going nowhere

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has stressed captain Wayne Rooney will not be leaving Old Trafford any time soon.

The England skipper has been heavily linked with a move away from United in recent weeks after losing his starting berth under the former Chelsea boss.

Inter are believed to be among his admirers, while Everton boss Ronald Koeman has said he would be interested if the forward ever became available for a return to his former club.

Nevertheless, Mourinho is adamant Rooney will not be allowed to leave the club for the foreseeable future.

“You can write and say what you want about Wayne, but it is not true,” Mourinho told reporters.

“I know he’s the type of player I need and I know he can play at the top level. I can’t make this kind of mental exercise and say what’s going to happen at 32, 33, 34 or 35 [Rooney turned 31 this week]. 

“What I can say is that he’s a very good player, a very important player for us. He’s going nowhere.

“We like him, he likes us. He was not happy in the last matches because he was on the bench but I think he is even unhappier when he is not on the bench because he’s been injured and has to stay in the stands. 

“There are no problems at all, but you need to sell papers and you write lies. Rooney is back Saturday.”

Rooney has a contract with United until June 2019.