It is being reported that once Wayne Rooney returns from his warm weather break in Dubai (which I am sure we could all do with) he will sign a new five-and-a-half year £86m deal which will be worth about £300,000 a week.
Is he worth that much? That splits into two questions: is any footballer worth that much and is he worth that much to United? On the first question, one can already envisage Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells drafting a letter to the press.
It is being reported that once Wayne Rooney returns from his warm weather break in Dubai (which I am sure we could all do with) he will sign a new five-and-a-half year £86m deal which will be worth about £300,000 a week.
Is he worth that much? That splits into two questions: is any footballer worth that much and is he worth that much to United? On the first question, one can already envisage Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells drafting a letter to the press.
However, it is worth noting that quite a lot of his earnings will be absorbed in tax, contributing to the around 30 per cent of income tax revenue paid by the top one per cent of earners. It’s really all a matter of scarcity value: people pay huge sums of money for paintings by famous artists that rarely come on to the market.
What is more questionable is whether this is a good deal for United. As The Times football editor, Tony Evans, commented this morning: ‘There is an uncharacteristic whiff of panic around Manchester United. They are used to the smell of fear at Old Trafford: just not their own.’
United performed poorly in the summer transfer market and that wasn’t just down to manager David Moyes, but also to Edward Woodward who took over the responsibility for buying and selling from the experienced David Gill.
This contract will keep Rooney, who is 28, at Old Trafford until he is 34. He is good, but he is not as good as this contract. Of course, United need to keep their Champions League place. They can survive one year outside, but two would be riskier and three would be dangerous for their all important commercial strategy.