Jose Mourinho tells Wayne Rooney he must leave Manchester United if he wants guaranteed first team football

[PHOTO: COURTESY]

Jose Mourinho has told Wayne Rooney that if he wants guaranteed first team football he must leave Manchester United.

Boss Mourinho has dropped his out-of-form skipper in recent weeks preferring instead to use Rooney from the bench.

Rooney missed Sunday's capitulation at Chelsea through injury and his future could now be away from Old Trafford with Mourinho offering no guarantees over a return to the side once he's fit.

Despite his bad run there is sure to be no shortage of suitors with Sven-Goran Eriksson ready to test Rooney's determination to stay with a mega-money offer to play in China.

The Swede will make the proposal in the new year for the England international to finish his playing days in the Far East.

Owners of Eriksson’s Chinese Super League club Shanghai SIPG have been monitoring his situation.

And they will tempt Rooney with a massive £80million deal to switch his allegiance to the Far East.

The offer of a £500,000-a-week deal – plus commercial bonuses – was made to Rooney and his advisors 10 months ago.

But after lengthy discussions, Rooney decided he wanted to continue his career for United and England.

However, the striker’s position has changed since Mourinho took over at Old Trafford with the new United boss unable to guarantee his captain a regular starting place.

And with his England career now also at a crossroads, Rooney’s head could well be turned by the mind-boggling figures on offer.

The other option that could be on the table for the star, who turns 31 on Monday is to follow former England internationals Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard to the MLS.

However, it would be impossible for any franchise to match the cash the Chinese are currently throwing at the game in order to become football’s new global superpower.