Wayne Rooney’s prospects of moving to the Chinese Super League before the close of their transfer window next week could hinge on whether Jose Mourinho includes the Manchester United captain in his squad for Sunday’s EFL Cup final against Southampton.

Mourinho admitted on Tuesday that he could not guarantee Rooney would still be a United player after next Tuesday, when the Chinese transfer window closes, despite claiming that he would never push him out and wants him to stay.

But Rooney could decide that his interests would be best served by moving to China now, on wages of more than £600,000 a week, as opposed to the summer, if he fails to make Mourinho’s 18-man squad, which would offer the clearest indication yet that he does not figure prominently in the manager’s plans.

In turn, Mourinho repeatedly refused to kill off rumours Rooney could leave next week and said it was up to the player to deny something like that.