Former England captain Wayne Rooney has ended his time with D.C. United surely a little disappointed - the MLS club failed to advance further in the playoffs with the former Manchester United member serving as player-coach. Rooney, however, will continue with his life on the pitch.
Upon his return to England, the United legend will pick up on the same role he had in MLS. Derby County will tap on the expertise of Rooney starting in January, and he will be suiting for the Rams, again as player-coach.
There is a bonus, however, waiting for Rooney and family, the Mirror reported. Manchester City made good on its promise to take back Kai Rooney and assume his spot at the club's football academy once the family is back on English soil.
So by the time Rooney resumes playing ball back home, his son will continue on the path of learning deeper the sports that made the elder Rooney a legend.
The United icon's spell in MLS lasted 16 months, and the stay might not be as illustrious as that in England, but Rooney delivered that was expected of him. Short of winning a title, there is no doubt Rooney made good impressions.
Likewise, his MLS stint left an indelible mark on his mind and foremost is the realization that European football is doing better as expected and more so in the case of players compensations. According to Rooney, homegrown MLS talents are underpaid.
"The salary for a lot of players [is an issue here]. I think, for the revenue the league is bringing in, the salary is not high enough for in particular the young American players," Goal.com reported the player as saying.
He added that as opposed to the revenues being generated by the league, most players in MLS are receiving too little in salaries, and the practice is more prevalent in up and coming American footballers.
"They deserve more, they're working the same as we're working, they're training as much as we're training, and I just feel that sometimes they get took advantage of," Rooney said.
In addition, Rooney criticized the conduct of the transfer market in U.S. football, which he described as unfair to MLS players.
He noted that in Europe, players enjoy the freedom of switching clubs when warranted and the promise of attracting better pay when transferring. The same flexibility is not available to the majority of MLS players, Rooney stated.
"I feel here players can get moved on too easily, they can have a family, come home from training one day and they get told they're moving to the west coast, the east coast," the football legend further explained.
