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Alex pardons Rooney over contract controversy
Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has cleared Wayne Rooney of any blame for last week's uncertainty over his future at the club.
Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson has cleared Wayne Rooney of any blame for last week's uncertainty over his future at the club.
After watching his team move up to third place in the Premier League with a 2-1 win at Stoke on the injured Rooney's 25th birthday, Ferguson said that player agents were solely to blame when players agitated for a transfer. Rooney seemed ready to leave when he questioned the club's ability to sign leading players and the club announced that he had refused to sign a new contract.
But the England striker eventually signed a new five-year contract to replace a deal that was set to expire at the end of next season, reportedly more than doubling his previous salary of 90,000 pounds ($ 141,650) a week."There are always issues to deal with," Ferguson said. "When your top players come towards the end of their contracts you have to do something to get them a new one. You have to deal with agents of this world today, which is difficult. Rooney's agent, Paul Stretford, has been widely criticised for what has been perceived as a flirtation with Manchester City.
