Rooney is Moyes's top priority

On the way out? ... David Moyes has a fight on his hands to keep Wayne Rooney. Source: Paul Ellis / AFP

One of the most pressing items in David Moyes' in-tray when he takes over as Manchester United manager on July 1 will be what to do with Wayne Rooney.

United insisted on Wednesday the England striker was not for sale, but a person familiar with the situation said Rooney held talks with manager Alex Ferguson in recent weeks and indicated he wanted to leave.

Those discussions took place before Ferguson announced he was retiring at the end of the season.

It's the second time Rooney has asked to quit United, having backed down from a transfer request in 2010 after negotiating a new and improved contract.

Rooney fuelled further speculation overnight by removing the term "Manchester United player" from his Twitter page and replaced it with "NikeUK athlete"

At the time Rooney was widely considered among the world's top strikers. Now, he is no longer the No.1 choice at United, slipping behind Robin van Persie in the list of strikers at Old Trafford this season and often playing in central midfield.

Now that Moyes has replaced Ferguson, the situation becomes even more delicate.

It was Moyes who reluctantly sold Rooney to United in 2004 and then launched successful legal action against the striker over allegations in Rooney's autobiography that the Scot leaked details of a private conversation to the media about the factors behind Rooney's move from Everton.

The pair appear to be back on good terms but it won't stop the speculation.

Rooney is reportedly being pursued by Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain - two of Europe's top sides - but could see Moyes' arrival as a chance to revive his time at United.

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