Wayne Rooney to leave Manchester United for only £12.5 million?

Rooney to leave United?

Manchester United’s super-striker Wayne Rooney could be on his way out for only £12.5 million in the summer. The forward whose contract expires next summer, has stalled contract negotiations till after the World Cup, to gauge where Manchester United finish this season, considering their faltering form.

After the World Cup, Rooney would be in the last year of his contract, and according to Article 17 of Fifa’s regulations for the status and transfer of players, a player who signed a contract before the age of 28 is entitled to buy himself out of the contract three years after the deal was signed.

Rooney was 24 when he signed his last United contract on Oct 22, 2010, so his protected period officially ended on Oct 22, 2013. To avoid Fifa sanctions, Rooney would have to serve United with his intention to leave within 15 days of the final Premier League game of the season on May 11.

Such a move would cost Rooney around £12.5 million, whose United deal is worth £250,000 a week, but he could demand a huge signing on fee from his new club by effectively moving as a free agent. The Red Devils are taking a big risk by not cashing in on Rooney now. Chelsea and Arsenal are the main-suitors for the forward, with Mourinho reportedly set to wait till the summer for Rooney and hence is not signing a forward in this window.

French mid-fielder Yohan Cabaye may quit Newcastle for as little as £6 million in the summer – and the club are taking a big financial risk by keeping him for the remainder of the season, under the same clause.