Wayne Rooney, a former English superstar, has agreed to contract terms that will have him serve as the manager of the US capital city's DC United, reuniting him with the MLS team for which he played with in 2018 and 2019, the national sports media reported on Sunday.
Rooney was welcomed by the team's staff as he arrived from London at Virginia's Dulles International Airport on Sunday night. Before being driven away, the football legend gave a brief interview in which he stated there are still "a few things to sort out" regarding the contract but that he was looking forward to the "challenge" of managing United, who lost Friday's game to Philadelphia, 7-0, setting a new MLS record for scoring margin, per the Washington Post.
The parties are set to shortly sign a multi-year deal for at least $1 million yearly, which would be the largest coaching compensation in club history, according to the report.
Once the deal is finalized and he is granted a work visa, Rooney is expected to succeed interim coach Chad Ashton, who took over the team when Hernán Losada was replaced six games into the season. Ashton is anticipated to resume his position as assistant coach, which he has held for the majority of the last 15 years, after Rooney officially comes onboard.
Rooney will act as the team consultant up until he gets the permit, which generally takes two to three weeks, per the report.
Ashton was reportedly informed of the coaching choice over the weekend, and on Sunday, club representatives informed the players of Rooney's planned arrival via a virtual team gathering.
The English footballer had previously managed the Derby; however, after the club was relegated to third tier due to severe financial issues, Rooney opted to resign from his post last month.
According to one source, Rooney intends to bring on an assistant from his home country and try to convince players he knows who are based in Europe to join United either during the current transfer window, which is open until August 4, or before the start of the 2023 season.
Luis Suarez, a 35-year-old Uruguayan forward who has played for Liverpool, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid, is one of the players supposedly wanted by Rooney. The MLS designation for high-end purchases, designated players, has two available spaces for United.
Rooney has kept good relationships with some DC players and team officials since departing United after the 2019 season, and they have frequently sought his advice on prospective player additions.
According to reports, since Rooney's second season in MLS, United has failed to make the playoffs. He had intended to play in Washington for at least one more season, but he and the team decided to part ways since his family felt uneasy living abroad.
It is also purportedly unclear if the club had adhered to the MLS's diversity recruiting criterion, which calls for at least two non-White individuals to be among the top candidates for technical staff jobs. No further names have come to light in the media.