believes the presence of Alex Ferguson at Manchester United is a problem for any manager that takes over the club, while will have felt the pressure more than any other after playing under the great Scot.
It has been a fallow period for the Red Devils since Ferguson retired in 2013, with the Premier League title not returning to Old Trafford under any manager since.
Ferguson is still a huge figure at the club, understandably after his 27 years of management, is often in attendance at matches and still wields plenty of influence behind the scenes.
Rooney feels this brings more pressure to any manager that takes over the Red Devils, with the shadow of Ferguson’s success looming large over them, but it was especially difficult for Solskjaer during his spell in charge.
The Norwegian became a club legend playing under Ferguson, so it would be especially difficult for him to forge his own path with United, given the Scot is still a prominent figure while he tries to work.
‘I think obviously he’s still involved in some way, you see him at the games, and that naturally would bring pressure to whatever manager goes in there,’ Rooney told of his former boss.
‘But, you’ve had [Louis] Van Gaal, [Jose] Mourinho, Ole Gunnar [Solskjaer], probably for Ole it might be the more difficult one because he’s played under him.
‘But if you want to manage and you are at Manchester United, you have to do it your way. You can’t go back to Sir Alex Ferguson, you have to do it your way and make them decisions.’
Whether Ferguson is literally around Old Trafford or not, Rooney says following the Scot’s epic stint in charge was going to be extremely tough for anyone and has called on his former club to give whoever they appoint in the summer the time to build their own legacy.
‘When Sir Alex retired, I think everyone knew it was going to be a very difficult job,’ Rooney continued.
‘David Moyes came in and it didn’t work out and from then, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, we’ve had good managers but Manchester United is a different club to many clubs around the world.
‘It needs someone to come in with that time to get that club back to where it deserves to be. It’s not going to happen if you keep changing manager every two years.’
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