England’s record top scorer left Everton just a year after into his two-year deal at his boyhood club
Wayne Rooney has revealed Everton were happy to let him leave the club towards the end of the season.
England’s record goalscorer is set to make his debut for new club DC United on Saturday when they take on Vancouver at the Audi Field stadium.
Rooney was the Toffees’ top scorer last season with eleven goals in all competitions after making a return to his boyhood club last summer.
He signed a two-year deal with Everton but Rooney claimed he had no choice but to find a new club after they made it clear they were happy to see him leave.
In an interview with ESPN, Rooney said: “Obviously at Manchester United that [playing] wasn’t happening as much as I would have liked and I quite easily could have stayed there with two years left on my contract and picked up the wages and been happy with that and that’s it.
“But I wanted to play, went back to Everton and had a year there, then as I’ve said before, Everton made it clear towards the end of the season that they’d be happy for me to leave.
“For whatever reason, I still don’t know. I felt I was doing okay, I was top goal scorer [despite] playing most of the season from midfield.
“But that’s football. And that gave me a decision to make, and I made this decision.”
Rooney also revealed he had other offers on the table before signing his three-and-a-half-year contract with DC United.
He added: “I said to Everton, ‘Listen, I’m not a kid and if this [leaving the club] is what you want, tell me. If you want me to stay, tell me’ and we talked about it.
“So, this option became available as well as a few different ones, and I just felt this was the right one.”
