Fergie reveals offers from abroad
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FERGIE REVEALS OFFERS FROM ABROAD
United boss confirms approaches in past
WITH stands steeped in history and a stadium that has all the trappings of success, Manchester United is made for superstars.
Old Trafford, the Theatre of Dreams. No one leaves until their time is up.
Even Sir Alex Ferguson, with two Champions League trophies and 11 Premier League titles, has never been seduced.
He has been sounded out by some of the biggest clubs in Europe over the past two decades and yet there has never been a wobble.
Wayne Rooney, take note.
"I've had offers from clubs to go abroad, but I've never been tempted by them," admitted the United chief.
"I am not going on record to say who they are, but you'd be surprised by the names.
"It flies over your head and you get on with life. You don't leave Manchester United."
He claims he has never dared to dream and yet one of his players is doing just that, swayed by the mesmerising skills of Lionel Messi.
Rooney had never given it a second's thought until he travelled to Barcelona to shoot a commercial, fixated by the flashes of genius in the club's forward line.
The Manchester United striker has imagined what it would be like to play alongside Messi, Thierry Henry and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
They would be the world's most feared attacking force, with Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta and Seydou Keita providing irresistible support from midfield.
Those are the day-dreaming moments, fantasy football in a foreign land.
ROONEY: Head turned by Barca?It has always been an alien concept, a fanciful thought for a player who could achieve all his ambitions at Old Trafford.
Then there's the reality check, with a new-born son to consider after his wife Coleen gave birth to their first child last week.
He is settled in Prestbury, a 20-minute drive from United's training ground and happy with his lifestyle.
Of course there have been moments of frustration, with United failing to spend big in the summer to replace Cristiano Ronaldo.
They baulked at the £50m (41m euros) Real Madrid paid Lyon for Karim Benzema and then stuttered over the asking price for Valencia playmaker David Silva.
Word at United is that Silva, full of craft going forward, is too slow for the Premier League and United are not willing to pay top dollar.
Spending big is a thing of the past under the Glazers, with Ferguson bringing through another generation of homegrown players from their Carrington training academy.
That will take time, yet Rooney demands to play on the greatest stage of all.
Only this week he appeared to commit his future to United, telling supporters that he wanted to spend the rest of his career at the club.
His agent Paul Stretford has been told United will offer Rooney a new deal the moment his ban from acting as his representative ends in January.
That contract will be worth £150,000 a week and yet the Glazers, heaving under the pressure of £800m worth of debt, could be tempted to cash in.
A good World Cup and Rooney's value will go through the roof, far exceeding the £20m (£25.6 million) they paid when they signed him from Everton in 2004.
He is already worth a fortune, up there with Cristiano Ronaldo's record-breaking £80m move to Real Madrid in the summer.
A large slice of that, just shy of £60m, was immediately hived off by the Glazers to pay their annual interest payments.
They are even making redundancies at the training ground in January - something denied by the club last week - adding to the uncertainty at the club.
With the exception of Rooney, there is no longer a touch of stardust in the United side.
The striker is carrying the team, playing the best football of his career for a team still adusting to life without the World Player of the Year.
Ferguson's team still miss Ronaldo's rampaging technique, the outrageous goals and his tricks and flicks.
Now it is over to Rooney, brought in from isolation on the left to spearhead United's strikeforce this season.
He has responded, scoring nine goals already and is easily the club's most important player.
Rooney is carrying them and yet he wants a sense of the future, something to whet his appetite before he commits to United for the rest of his career.