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Manchester United's owners were convinced they would lose Wayne Rooney to Manchester City after the striker submitted a transfer request in 2010.

Tehsin Nayani, the former spokesman of the Glazer family, reveals in his book documenting the Americans' ownership of the club how there was 'a growing resignation among the club's hierarchy' that Rooney was 'on his way to join Abu Dhabi-owned Manchester City'.

Rooney, United's Player of the Year at the time, rejected a new contract in August 2010 and informed chief executive David Gill he wanted to leave the club over concerns about United's ambition.

Nayani recalls how a 'most unedifying public relations battle between Rooney and United' unfolded before negotiations reopened negotiations Rooney became 'one of the highest paid players in the country' following a conference call with the Glazers.

Rooney's worries were sparked by Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez's departures the previous year. United were accused of insufficiently strengthening their squad, having spent £43m on Antonio Valencia, Gabriel Obertan, Mame Biram Diouf, Chris Smalling, Javier Hernandez and Bebe, as well as signing free transfer Michael Owen.

Sir Alex Fergusonadmitted Rooney was 'adamant' about leaving United on the eve of their October 2010 Champions League match with Bursaspor and, on the same day, a Paul Scholes tackle ruled Rooney out injured for a month.







Later that week, balaclava-clad militants visited Rooney's house in Prestbury, Cheshire, and unfurled a banner that reportedly read 'If you join City you're dead'.

A day later, United announced Rooney had inked a five-year deal.

Ferguson wrote in his autobiography how a 'sheepish' and 'programmed' Rooney questioned him on the club's failure to sign Mesut Ozil from Werder Bremen.

Ozil, who had enjoyed an enterprising 2010 World Cup with Germany, joined Real Madrid for just over £12m.

"Wayne said that we should have pursued Mesut Özil. My reply was that it was none of his business who we should have gone for," Ferguson wrote in 2013.

"I told him it was his job to play and perform. My job was to pick the correct teams."

Rooney was receptive to the idea of joining City a year after Carlos Tevez crossed the Manchester divide, with The Blues prepared to pay the England striker £200,000-a-week.

Following the saga, Rooney insisted he had not considered joining City.

"Everyone is saying that I was definitely going to Manchester City. Believe me, if I had gone, it wouldn’t have been in England, I’d have gone abroad," he said.

See how United fans rated Rooney against City below