Everton dishes out record transfer fee for Rooney

Everton has shelled out a record transfer fee for England's teen star Wayne Rooney, who is now likely to stay with the league rivals.

England's teenage star Wayne Rooney is likely to stay at Everton as the league rivals have balked at shelling out a record transfer fee for the Euro 2004 sensation, a club director said on Wednesday.

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Everton announced on Tuesday it had offered the strapping 18-year-old a new five-year contract, biggest in the Premiership club's history, and were awaiting a response from his agent Paul Stretford.

"Wayne is a Blue. His family are Blues. They've grown up as Evertonians and it's our ambition for them to continue as Evertonians," Paul Gregg told reporters at a Bangkok signing ceremony for a sponsorship deal with Thailand's largest brewer, Chang Beer.

"We have received no offers from any other club. We have every reason to believe he will be with the team when he recovers from his foot injury at the beginning of the season."

Gregg also waved off rumours of a record 50 million-pound transfer move for the striker by Manchester United, which United chief executive David Gill has also dismissed.

"I can confirm to you that there has been no interest expressed by Manchester United. We hope that they can't afford Wayne Rooney, and that effectively Wayne will stay with Everton," Gregg said.

"Obviously he's going to move at some point in his career, that would be the right thing to do. But our belief is it's in his best interest to stay at Everton certainly for the next three or four years."

Further damping down transfer talk, Gregg said Rooney reported for club training on Monday.

Rooney struck four goals in Euro 2004 to help England reach the quarter-finals, where they lost to hosts Portugal on penalties.

The teenager sustained a broken bone in his right foot during the defeat but his excellent performances had already rocketed him into the limelight.