Pep Guardiola ready to take Wayne Rooney under his wing at Manchester City

We often see the movement of players between rival clubs, but it is a scandal when a legend of the club does it. It seems Wayne Rooney is close to being the latest example of this phenomenon, and the backlash could be huge for him.

Rooney has spent most of his career at Manchester United, eventually becoming their leading goal scorer and has won everything with them. But now that he is no longer playing, it looks like the new direction he is taking as manager could cut him off from many Red Devils fans.

Pep Guardiola discusses possible Wayne Rooney addition to his coaching staff

Wayne Rooney has not had the best start to his managerial career so far, and he was sacked from his last job in January. He has been without a club since then but is interested in rejoining the sport, with interest from Saudi Pro League as well.

Recently, Rooney praised Pep Guardiola and remarked that he would want to learn from him, as an assistant manager like Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta. This is despite the fact that Guardiola is the manager of Manchester City, the derby rivals of Manchester United, of which he is considered a great legend. Rooney would surely become a hated figure at Old Trafford if he decided to become assistant manager at Guardiola’s City.

And when Pep was asked about Rooney’s desire to join him, the Spaniard was very flattered. He said that he would be open to Rooney being his assistant, “I don’t know where he lives. It’s Cheshire? So it’s close. He can come any time, he’s more than welcome.”

Pep also praised Rooney and said that a compliment from him means a lot, “Wayne Rooney has been one of the greatest in this country of all time, so if he makes compliments for all of us, it’s nice. He was working around here for many years – so he knows.”

Wayne Rooney lauds Pep Guardiola

Earlier this week, Wayne Rooney was on the Stick to Football podcast. At one point, he was asked about Pep Guardiola. And it was then that he made the remark that he would accept to be Guardiola’s assistant manager without any second thought. He even referenced Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, who was previously assistant manager to Guardiola’s City, as to why it would be great for him to learn from Pep.

The Englishman had said, “If Pep Guardiola comes in and asks me to be his assistant, you’d walk there. You see what Mikel Arteta is doing now at Arsenal and I strongly believe a lot of that is from learning what Guardiola was doing, and so it depends on what the situation is.”

He further labelled Pep as the best manager, despite the fact that he had played under United’s legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson, who is often given the same title. “For me, the best manager is Pep and you look at how he adapts – how City are playing now is not the same as how they were playing four years ago.”

Rooney retired from soccer in 2021 as a player, and became a manager the same year for Derby County. He then managed MLS side DC United, and was recently managing Championship club Birmingham City. He was sacked this January after a very poor start, and he is now without a club.

It remains to be seen whether Wayne Rooney does go on to become an assistant manager at City, though it remains unlikely for the time being.