WAYNE ROONEY is set to be unveiled as DC United’s new manager on Tuesday – but wife Coleen is concerned about being “oceans apart” as she wants to stay in the UK.
The former Derby County boss has agreed an £800,000-a-year deal to take charge of the Washington DC-based club, where he was previously a player.
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The move now has to be rubber-stamped by Major League Soccer which will not be a problem and his first game could be at home to Columbus Crew in the early hours of Thursday morning.
Rooney spent two seasons for DC United after leaving Everton in the summer of 2018 and scored 25 goals in 52 appearances across two seasons.
Yet his decision to move back to the States is a surprise, particularly as his wife Coleen struggled to settle when they lived there previously.
It is understood that Coleen has given his managerial switch her full backing but it is unclear whether she will move the family again.
Under the leadership of interim head coach Chad Ashton, DC sit in 13th place in MLS’ Eastern Conference – second from bottom.
They were thumped 7-0 by Philadelphia Union and 24 hours later, the players were told the news of their new manager at a team meeting.
Rooney, 36, left League One side Derby at the end of June having been unable to prevent the crisis-hit club from relegation out of the Championship.
He received plenty of plaudits for the way he led a club in administration and severe financial difficulties.
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Rooney had been asked to interview for the manager’s job at Everton previously and also staged talks with Burnley after the sacking of Sean Dyche.
Yet Rooney was unwilling to leave Derby because at the time, American Chris Kirchner was due to buy the club.
After that attempt fell apart and businessmen David Clowes took over, Rooney left Pride Park.
However, Rooney’s wife Coleen could be reluctant to make the move.
In texts to Rebekah Vardy in 2018, which were revealed earlier this year amid their courtroom battle, Coleen said: “Washington isn’t the best…. nice to visit but different to live.
“Not loads for the kids to do, mostly park, hardly any soft plays and things like that.
“It’s quite behind the UK, which I never would have thought. But we will get used to it (I hope).
“Wayne is loving it, and the kids are fine, settled into school straight away. So really happy they are fine.”
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He flew to the US on Sunday, after Coleen, 36, had laid bare the tensions in their marriage and how she was so homesick living in America that she often cried herself to sleep.
Rooney is keen to take the job to further his management career, but pals of the couple fear it will put yet more strain on their troubled marriage and they are “oceans apart”.
A source told The Sun: “Wayne has discussed the job with Coleen, but she has categorically said she’s not going.
“That said, she doesn’t want to stand in his way. They have an understanding that they are a team but emotionally she isn’t invested.
“There has been a lot of back and forth but they now agree to disagree.
“The children are settled in school and do not want to go back to America, so they plan to stay in Cheshire with their mum.
“It will be very hard for everyone as a managerial job is much more time consuming than being a player, so nipping back to the UK will be hard.”