Fergie to run the rule over Rooney
Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson will decide on Thursday if Wayne Rooney is fit enough to return to the first team following the striker's reconditioning in the USA.
• Utd preparing for Fergie retirement
Rooney, who signed a lucrative new deal to keep him at United last month, has been put through his paces in Oregon as he recovers from an ankle injury and attempts to rediscover the form that deserted him at the end of last season.
A leaner-looking Rooney was due to return to training at United's Carrington complex on Wednesday and Ferguson will assess the 25-year-old when he jets back to England on Thursday.
"Wayne has had a good week in Oregon. He's done well," Ferguson told a conference in Doha, Qatar. "Now, he's back and he will train today.
"We have to assess if he is ready to get into the first team. That is an area which I couldn't give you an answer to because the only evidence we will have is on the training field and I'll see that tomorrow."
After scoring 26 Premier League goals last season Rooney was voted player of the year but the England striker's form was dire at the World Cup and continued to plummet over the next few months amid some lurid allegations in the press.
Ferguson went on to say that he blamed Rooney's agent Paul Stretford for urging the striker to express a desire to leave Old Trafford last month, before he performed the U-turn that landed him a new contract.
"Some young people today take bad advice," Ferguson said. "He's got an agent who is not the most popular man in the world, certainly not at our club. But there's nothing wrong with making a mistake as long as you recognise it. He [Rooney] has apologised and signed a new contract. I think what we want is Wayne back to his best. When that happens I think everyone will be OK."
Asked if Rooney had been unsettled by an approach from neighbours Manchester City, Ferguson said: "You're never going to find out."
United, who trail Premier League leaders Chelsea by three points, play Wigan Athletic at Old Trafford on Saturday and Rooney's return would provide a huge boost for the club.
