Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has said that captain Wayne Rooney must play for the Under-21s before returning to first-team action.
The 30-year-old trained twice with the first-team squad this week as he steps up his recovery after suffering knee ligament damage in February and the United striker is expected to turn out for Warren Joyce’s men when they play Middlesbrough at Old Trafford on Monday night.
If he comes through that game with no problems, it could put the United and England skipper in line to return for the Reds’ FA Cup quarter-final replay against West Ham on Wednesday.
Speaking to MUTV in his weekly interview, Van Gaal explained that Rooney had to build up his fitness before making a proper return to the United first-team:
It is very important that our captain is coming back. He only trained with us for two sessions and then you are not fit to play. That is the big difference. Everyone is thinking Wayne is fit again but it is not like that. He has to build up his capacity to play a match at the level of a Premier League match.
Attendance for Monday’s night game at Old Trafford is free, so United fans can head down to the Theatre of Dreams to catch a glimpse of Rooney in action.
