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Former Manchester United skipper Wayne Rooney announced his departure from Premier League. He completed his move to DC United in a three-and-a-half-year deal. He will officially complete his move when the US mid-season transfer window opens on 10 July. Most probably, he will make his début at the club's new stadium, Audi Field Stadium on 14 July.
He has been in Premier League for all his career, starting as a teenager for Everton where he caught the eyes of Sir Alex Ferguson who brought him to Manchester United in 2004 when he was a boy. He went on to score 253 goals in 559 appearances for the club, winning numerous trophies. Absolute Legend!
It will be a huge change for the former England skipper who leaves his country for the very first time to play for another league. Mario Balotelli, Javier Hernández, Carlos Tevez and even Andrés Iniesta were reportedly all considered at one point or another by DC United before they finally settled on Rooney.
Romantic return home did not work out
The time is right for Wayne Rooney to play in MLS. He left United in the last summer window to join his boyhood team, Everton. He was Everton's highest goalscorer, netting 11 goals in 40 matches across all competitions as the Toffees finished eighth in the Premier League but the reality is that he struggled for both, fitness and form. Everton themselves had a very poor season and Wazza was unable to lead his side by an example.
The Evertonians were extremely happy when Rooney announced his move to the Toffees. He played for United in his prime but still remained one of the fan's favourite in those years.
Sam Allardyce was himself obfuscated that what would be Rooney's best position to play. He played few games as a midfielder and then sometimes as a number 10. His depreciating speed and fitness are the reasons that we think his move to MLS can prove to be a romantic fantasy.
A new life in the USA
He will join MLS and play against some of his former Manchester United's teammate like Bastian Schweinsteiger and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He will also meet David Beckham who himself is very active in the MLS.
Rooney will have a life without much criticism for the way he plays in MLS. The media and pundits in the Premier League are always on top of the players, analysing every tackle, every shot. The decreasing level of fitness didn't allow Rooney to play as he did in the earlier years, which invited opprobrium from the pundits.
But MLS will be a new start for Wazza. He will have more freedom to express himself on and off the pitch. Lack of scrutiny and pressure is what Rooney will be targeting at this time of his career. He would have the luxury to walk down the town without being interrupted by a lot of people just like Thierry Henry used to do when he was playing in MLS. Imagine Rooney walking on the roads of Manchester, people would have gone berserk!
However, his life in the US won't be a cakewalk as experienced by his former England's colleagues Steven Gerard and Flank Lampard. His new side, DC United are currently bottom of the Eastern Conference, five points behind the team above them in the standings (although they have a few games in hand over other teams).
They won only 2 games out of 12. However, the signing of Wayne Rooney will give United's fans some hope that he could still resurrect their miserable season.
