Wayne Rooney: Manchester United dismiss Chelsea bid
Manchester United rejected Chelsea's opening offer for Wayne Rooney on Tuesday night and remain insistent the England striker is not for sale.
Chelsea have confirmed the bid but have denied offering cash plus a player, either Juan Mata or David Luiz, in part exchange for the 27-year-old.
United immediately rejected the offer and left Chelsea in no doubt as to their position on the matter.
But Rooney has reiterated his desire to leave the club this summer.
He has been left angered by recent messages coming out of Old Trafford, most noticeably new manager David Moyes's suggestion Robin van Persie is his main striker.
The Scot said last week: "Overall, my thought on Wayne is that if for any reason we had an injury to Robin van Persie we are going to need him."
Rooney has expressed his disappointment to senior figures at the club and insisted he will not accept a squad role behind Dutch striker Van Persie.
United have refused to comment on the latest twist in the saga, with their players in Sydney on the second leg of their pre-season tour.
But Chelsea did release a statement on Wednesday, expressing their disappointment that news of their bid had leaked out and denying that any player was included in the offer, despite sources close to the talks claiming otherwise. "Chelsea can confirm that yesterday it made a written offer to Manchester United for the transfer of Wayne Rooney," it read.
"Although the terms of that offer are confidential, for the avoidance of doubt and contrary to what is apparently being briefed to the press in Sydney, the proposed purchase does not include the transfer or loan of any players from Chelsea to Manchester United."
United insist they will not be bullied into selling Rooney, despite the England striker's disgruntlement, and are determined to deal with Rooney's future on their terms.
With Manchester City, who are hopeful of completing the signing of Sevilla striker Alvaro Negredo this week, unwilling to follow up their historic interest, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid showing no interest and Barcelona having signed the Brazil forward Neymar, Chelsea have emerged as the likeliest destination for Rooney.
Paris Saint-Germain have also been linked with Rooney but the French champions have just signed Uruguay striker Edinson Cavani from Napoli, and in addition the Englishman is understood to be reluctant to move abroad. It may now take Rooney to submit a formal transfer request to force the issue but even then, there would be no guarantee that United would grant him a move to a Premier League rival such as Chelsea.
New Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho confirmed his admiration for Rooney in a BBC interview on Tuesday and is likely to return with an improved offer.
United, however, feel comfortable with the situation and in a stronger position than 2010, when Rooney threatened to leave only to be persuaded to stay by Sir Alex Ferguson
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